I grew up in a tiny village somewhere between the Austrian mountains, knowing that I didn’t belong. My first ticket out was an artistic bicycle that I met when I was six years old. For the following sixteen years, it became my best friend, an incredible teacher and a traveling buddy to championships as far as Japan. It was during those years that I developed my discipline, my appreciation for world-class performances and probably a pinch too much perfectionism.

When I was nine years old, my parents took me to a theater production, and my mind was blown. But having had no artist in my immediate environment, I didn’t know that working in the arts was an option. So I studied economics (BA Business Administration) and later attended a copywriting school. Working in advertising agencies allowed me to use my creativity and write. I enjoyed developing concepts, breaking the story of the campaign down to various channels and finding a language that would speak to my many different target groups. But after more than a decade, there was this shy yet growing voice, telling me that my comfort zone might not be the place where the real magic was waiting.

When my life turned upside down twice a few years ago, I started to question everything. Especially my involvement in the “normal” way of living. My different views on the world, people and relationships were often the spark for passionate conversations. Why not try to make a living out of it? For six months, I moved to New York, took every writing class I could find and got cozy with the city’s many theater seats. What inspired me the most, was the way in which artists were searching for the truth underneath the many lies we’ve been told. I felt at home.

Ever since then, I’ve been honing my craft – in a writing program at Goldsmiths University of London (MA Musical Theatre Writing) and as a regular in playwriting, screenwriting, TV writing and directing courses of the Dramatist Guild, Primary Stages, Columbia University, the Juilliard School, HB Studios, the Royal School of Speech and Drama and the London Film Academy. As an athlete, I cannot not go to training.

Writing is how I make sense of the world, how I am able to express myself best and how I reconnect if something or someone tries to disconnect me from what I believe is true. I’ve been fortunate enough to have experienced some of the very highs, some of the very lows and a lot of life lessons in between. Every step and misstep were equally important to become the person and artist I am today. I take my own experience as seriously as those of others. I listen with an open heart, hoping to observe the essence of whoever stands in front of me. As long as no one gets hurt, I don’t interfere. But I will always offer additional perspectives and try to correct the imbalances in place.

My writing is, just like me, a sometimes uncomfortable but fair mirror that is unafraid to speak up when there is a problem in the room. I am ready to share the depth, care and honesty I have to offer. I hope you are too.