I’m a writer living in Minneapolis, Minnesota with my wife and kids. My dear mama named me Joshua, and most friends and loved ones call me Josh or J. A work friend dubbed me Dharmapala, and I like it. He uses it as an honorary title, like how they call the Count of Monte Cristo “Count.” 

I’m a staff member at a neighborhood park and rec center, and sometimes I substitute teach. Middle school is my favorite, but I enjoy all the grades.

I was a human rights lawyer for 15 years before quitting to focus on leading with my heart. My first book, Human Justice, tells the story of my last trial, where corporate values played out to their logical extreme. What happened led me to leave the law, and signaled that corporatism is incompatible with a sustainable future for our species and planet. Human Justice is available here in several digital formats on a donation basis, or, as Old Kanye calls it, “Free.99.” I call it the “Will Write For Food” marketing plan.

Shortly after finishing the first draft of Human Justice, I had a profound transformative experience where my reality unraveled over several frightening days and nights. My deepest fears and insecurities played out in supernatural ways, and I saw, heard, and felt things that don’t exist in this physical realm. Some call this sort of experience a psychotic break, and others call it a Dark Night of the Soul. 

I gradually emerged from my Dark Night with my liberty and spirit intact. Somehow, my body felt stronger and my mind sharper. I felt immense gratitude to be alive, and an overwhelming impulse to learn more about spirituality and regulating emotions. My second book, Good Vibes, is a coalescence of things I’ve learned about the subjects since my Dark Night. Good Vibes is currently in draft form, and I’m offering a PDF of it under the WWFF Plan.

I’m working on my third book and looking for an illustrator for a children’s book about mixed kids and multiculturism I wrote back in the day. 

I also write short pieces about social, societal, and spiritual stuff. I call them “essays,” my loved ones call it “journaling,” and we’re going with “J’essay.” My name starts with a J and Jesse’s my childhood best friend, so J’essay hits. I started submitting them as letters to the editor during the 2024 presidential election cycle as a hobby and creative outlet, and now I post them here.