Background

John R. Corrigan was born on February 24, 1970, in Augusta, Maine, United States. He is a son of John W. Corrigan, an accountant and business owner, and Connie Corrigan, maiden name, Dumont, a homemaker.

Education

John Corrigan was in 4th grade and they were doing long division in math. For him, it was like steps, like he was climbing a hill and for whatever reason. So he failed math at 9 years old. Nobody really knew much about dyslexia, and one of the teachers told Corrigan's mother, "Just face it. Some kids are slow." Se wouldn't accept that. His parents took John to the Boston Children's Hospital, where he was diagnosed as Teaming disabled, presumed dyslexic. The specialist said he was a poster boy for dyslexia. In 1986-1989, he attended Salisbury School. When Corrigan got to college he thought to major in psychology or criminology, but he wasn't doing well taking big lecture classes or multiple-choice tests. The thing he could always do was write papers. In 1992, he earned a Bachelor of Arts from the State University of New York at Fredonia, where he took nearly every English class offered, played hockey, served as sports editor of the college paper, and spent evenings stringing for the Dunkirk Observer. He earned a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from the University of Texas at El Paso in 1998.

Career

Before teaching, John Corrigan worked as a journalist. From September 1998 - June 2004, he was a Humanities Chair at Maine School of Science and Mathematics. From July 2004 - May 2006, he worked at Northern Maine Community College. From August 2006 - 2013, he was an English Chair at Pomfret School. Since 2020, John Corrigan is the Founder and Director of Lamplighter Literary Arts Summer Writing Institute at Northfield Mount Hermon School in Gill, Massachusetts. In 2013 - May 2020, he chaired the English department. He writes a regular post for the "Type M for Murder" blogsite. He also offers writing pedagogy workshops.

John Corrigan's mysteries are set on the PGA Tour and feature the first-person point of view of Jack Austin, a Maine native and journeyman Tour player. According to Corrigan, mysteries can be set anywhere: people see sleuths that are chefs, sports agents, scholars. He has always seen similarities between the PGA Tour player and the classic detective fiction protagonist because both live in worlds that require a moral code; both exist in somewhat solitary worlds as well. What makes the books very challenging to write, though, aren't the similarities; it's the differences. Jack Austin is not a detective. He is a golfer. As a writer, Corrigan has to deal with those limitations. Jack Austin is a character who has spent his entire life striving to achieve great things in golf. Thus, he is not a crack pistol shot, so any shooting must be from very close range or with a shotgun. That said, in the mold of the classics - Raymond Chandler, Robert B. Parker - Jack is a man of honor, of morals, and a guy who lives by his own code, respects the game, its founding fathers, his fellow competitors, and the Tour. Also, as a dyslexic, he tends to see things in terms of right and wrong. Readers know this, and it allows him to take on things - to get into situations - some people might not.

Achievements

• John Corrigan is the author of nine novels and numerous short stories. He has made a long and prolific career in education.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Out of Bounds

    (How far will a golfer go to maintain a lifestyle? Why are...)

    2006
  • Center Cut

    (In this golf mystery, tour player Jack Austin begins a ne...)

    2004
  • Bad Lie

    (In this golf mystery, Jack Austin promised surrogate son ...)

    2010
  • Cut Shot

    (Jack Austin is engaged, making a living, still believes i...)

    2001
  • Snap Hook

    (The Russian Mafia, long involved in North American pro sp...)

    2004
  • 364 Days

    (Each year, incarcerated men and women get one day to spen...)

    2004
  • Shooter

    (John R. Corrigan writes "characters you care about, well-...)

    2012

Membership

• 

  Mystery Writers of America , United States

Personality

Physical Characteristics: In 1979, prior to many discoveries in the field of learning disabilities, John Corrigan was broadly diagnosed as "learning disabled, presumed dyslexic" - a theme that resonates through some of his works.

Interests

• Sport & Clubs

  golf

Connections

John Corrigan married Lisa McBurnie on September 3, 1994. They have three daughters: Delaney, Audrey, and Keeley.

Father:

John W. Corrigan

Mother:

Connie Corrigan

Wife:

Lisa McBurnie Corrigan

Lisa McBurnie Corrigan works at Northfield Mount Hermon School since 2013.

Daughter:

Delaney Corrigan

Daughter:

Audrey Corrigan

Daughter:

Keeley Corrigan

References

• John Corrigan Author