PJ Haarsma
| PJ Haarsma | |
|---|---|
PJ Haarsma in 2015
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| Born | Philip-Jon Haarsma June 5, 1964 Georgetown, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Citizenship | Dual citizen of Canada and United States |
| Period | 2006 to the present |
| Genre | Young adult science fiction |
| Notable works |
The Softwire Series: Virus on Orbis 1 Betrayal on Orbis 2 Wormhole Pirates on Orbis 3 |
| Notable awards |
ABC New Voices in Children's Literature Award 2008 The Softwire |
| Spouse | Marisa Grieco |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | |
| www |
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Philip-Jon Haarsma /ˈhɑːrzmɑː/, more commonly known as PJ Haarsma, is a Canadian born science fiction author best known for his creation of the Rings of Orbis universe, which encompasses The Softwire series of books. Haarsma created a free, online role-playing game, also called the Rings of Orbis, set in the same universe. Both the book-series and the game target young, often reluctant readers in an attempt to encourage them by rewarding them for reading.
Haarsma developed a school presentation program in which he discusses The Softwire books, astronomy, and other science fiction and science fact topics. He is also one of the co-founders of Kids Need to Read, a United States Internal Revenue Code 501(c)(3) tax exempt public charity that purchases books to donate to underfunded schools and libraries.
Philip-Jon Haarsma was born on June 5, 1964, in Georgetown, Ontario. Though he was named after his grandfathers, Philip and Jon, he went simply by "Jon" while growing up. Later, while attending McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree, he began to use his initials, "PJ", and his books are published under the name "PJ Haarsma".
After he moved to the United States in 1989, Haarsma worked as a fashion and commercial photographer in New York City and Miami. He received many photography awards, including an honorable mention at the Cannes Lion Awards in 1996. Haarsma owned a small production company called Redbear Films, Inc. The company produced one movie (Devious Beings, 2002), and a digital series called Con Man starring Alan Tudyk and Nathan Fillion and several corporate ads for clients such as Hewlett Packard and Nokia. For 15 years, Redbear Films focused on the production of advertisements.
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