Dear Reader,

Being a monster’s complicated- you have knowledge people climb mountains to steal, you have depth the villagers whisper about (but they never ask your opinion). You’ve probably stolen treasures, knights or chickens. The townspeople got wasted a few times and stopped by your place with pitchforks, and things… things got messy.

But really, you’re just misunderstood. You never needed all that gold, you just liked how shiny it was. You didn’t really want all those chickens, but it was nice to have the company. The roaring and stomping? Secretly, you’re just theatrical.

We at Well Read Monsters understand. We’re all a little overexcited, a little messy. We like the legends built around us; mythology gets our blood flowing. Stories make us feel less alone.  So, we’ve built this little castle and gathered this community to tell our own. We also want to tell yours.  

We grew up on stories. Scary ones, sweet ones, stories that thrill and terrify and make us smile simultaneously. We love old TV’s innovation, the Twilight Zone’s inviting, sinister noir. We’re drawn to twisted fairy tales and zombie-riddled wastelands of the future, but we’re also hopeless romantics.

And who is this Jared Roberts person you may ask?

Jared Roberts is a Brooklyn-based writer, director, and founder of Well Read Monsters whose work lives at the intersection of science fiction and everyday comic neuroses.

His screenwriting credits include the sci-fi comedy Page 102, viral Youtube parody “You’re as Beautiful as We Think” and supernatural drama Extraordinary Organ, which he also directed. His pilot script, The Nervous System, an inventive half hour drama follows an epileptic who discovers his illness may be caused by an alien implant in his brain, placed at the 2016 Austin Film Festival. Jared has also worked on numerous music videos, commercials and short films. 

In 2014,  Jared founded Well Read Monsters, a production company,  which collaborates with writers, directors, and producers including Shawn Regruto (Point and Shoot); Ben Bowman (Knucklehead); Lisa Ebersole (37 Problems);  Matt Kim (Emilie); Laura Steinel (Red Oaks);  Jeff Wilser (GQ, Hamilton’s Guide to Life); and Andrei Zakow (Dirty Work Productions). As script consultant, he works with clients from New York to Los Angeles.

Jared’s writing extends beyond the screen and includes The Birthday Bizarre Series, as well as an expansive portfolio of short fiction appearing on the Well Read Monster's  Story Blog. These fantasy vignettes, feature an eclectic mix of characters from Phillip Andrew Pumpkowski a decorative gourd & textile salesman, Randall Emmit Piner, a furniture designing Christmas ornament or the tales Motivational Speakers Paul Kleeb and Brittle Ben Brown. All of which you can see on this site.

Fantasy rooted in the commonplace inspires the work Jared creates, consumes and critiques.

So come visit. Share your vision and allow us to make it a reality. Become part of the community.  Because in a way, we’re all scary, sweet, adventuresome monsters, aren’t we?

Jared Roberts & WRM