About H. Jacob Buller
Writer. Educator. Storyteller.
I write stories about curious characters, strange settings, and how perspective can shape how we make scents of the world around us.
From the prairies of Nebraska to the marshes and fields of Manitoba, I spent hours biking through fields, wading through drainage ditches, building forest forts, and exploring parts unknown. Those experiences continue to shape my fiction today, where seemingly ordinary places may obscure marvelous mysteries and alien adventures.
Alongside my fiction work, I created and published Our Co-Creators, a print newsletter featuring interviews, reporting, and commentary on community-building, sustainability, and emerging cultural initiatives. Over several years I served as writer, editor, interviewer, photographer, designer, and publisher, exploring many of the same questions about community, learning, and shared stories that continue to influence my work today. As part of this work, I presented at Nature Summit, an educator-focused conference dedicated to helping children build meaningful connections with the natural world. Many of those questions continue to shape my fiction, where characters grapple with belonging, cooperation, and finding their place in the world.
I am the author of The Stinkwater Escapee, a middle-grade adventure following Big Al, a crocodile who leaves his swamp only to discover that human beings may be stranger and more complex than anything he encountered in the marsh. Alongside the book, I created Mudwater Mutters, a companion podcast that explores storytelling, media literacy, and the wider world surrounding the story. I’ve also written other stories like Things That Need Doin’ (Icelandic Connetion, 2026).
Why I Write
Stories help us understand ourselves and one another. Through fiction we can begin to understand how other minds may mind.
Whether through novels, podcasts, classroom conversations, or community events, I am interested in how stories and media influence the way we think, communicate, and build adaptive communities.
Humor, curiosity, imagination, and critical thinking all play important roles in my work. I believe good stories can entertain, challenge assumptions, spark conversations, and encourage readers to look at familiar things in new ways.
Community and Education
In addition to writing, I work with students and communities through presentations, readings, discussions, and media literacy programs.
I enjoy helping young readers discover the creative process, understand how stories are built, and develop the confidence to tell stories of their own.
Connect
Interested in author visits, readings, interviews, podcasts, school presentations, or community events?