Ryan O'Connell – författare

''A horny romp that makes you think, laugh, and feel. O''Connell is one of my favourite writers'' MONICA HEISEY, author of Really Good, Actually

''A very funny novel about falling for a fantasy and finding love for one''s own self'' MELISSA BRODER, author of The Pisces

''Funny, horny, heartbreaking'' CAROLINE O''DONOGHUE, author of Promising Young Women

____________________Eliott is a TV writer with a perfect-penised boyfriend. He''s living the dream.But behind the glossy veneer, Elliott''s life is chaos. His boss is hateful, he''s cheating on his boyfriend and his cerebral palsy makes him feel like gay Shrek. Dream? More like a nightmare. When the face you show the world doesn''t match reality, how do you know who you are? Elliott needs to find out, and quick, or it will be a long limp towards redemption.A hilarious, sexy, ground-breaking debut novel about the intersection of queerness and disability, and discovering who you really are.____________________What readers are saying about Just By Looking at Him''Darkly funny and poignant''''Such a fresh take . . . I was gripped from the first page''''Brutally honest, funny and poignant look at modern life through the lens of disability''''This book is honest, hilarious, and raw . . . I loved literally every character''''The author has such a strong voice and has created in Eliot a character that I will not soon forget . . . I found myself laughing out loud''''Reads like your favorite whip- smart sitcom everyone looks forward to at the end of the day''''One of the funniest books I have ever read''

'A horny romp that makes you think, laugh, and feel. O'Connell is one of my favourite writers' MONICA HEISEY, author of Really Good, Actually'A very funny novel about falling for a fantasy and finding love for one's own self' MELISSA BRODER, author of The Pisces'Funny, horny, heartbreaking' CAROLINE O'DONOGHUE, author of Promising Young Women____________________Eliott is a TV writer with a perfect-penised boyfriend. He's living the dream.But behind the glossy veneer he's been papering over cracks, and they're starting to show. He's creatively stifled, he's drinking a little too often and his cerebral palsy makes him feel like gay Shrek.When River walks in, Elliott's life is turned upside down in the best way. River is funny, charming and makes him feel seen. But maybe that's part of the deal when you hire a sex worker.Eliott is lost and he needs someone, anyone, to point him in the right direction. After all, it's a long limp towards redemption.A hilarious, sexy, ground-breaking debut novel about the intersection of queerness and disability, and discovering who you really are.____________________What readers are saying about Just By Looking at Him'Darkly funny and poignant''Such a fresh take . . . I was gripped from the first page''Brutally honest, funny and poignant look at modern life through the lens of disability''This book is honest, hilarious, and raw . . . I loved literally every character''The author has such a strong voice and has created in Eliot a character that I will not soon forget . . . I found myself laughing out loud''Reads like your favorite whip- smart sitcom everyone looks forward to at the end of the day''One of the funniest books I have ever read'

Hilarious and bawdy musings on disability, sex, family, and Hollywood, from Emmy-winning writer and creator of the Netflix series Special.For years, Ryan O'Connell wished he was different. Raised in a small Southern California beach town described as "e;Laguna Beach with meth,"e; his dad had taken off for greener pastures, and his alcoholic mom packed him lunches that wouldn't win any Top Chef: Quickfire challenges. On top of that, he had to be disabled and gay?! Luckily, Ryan always had a love for writing. There, he could "e;construct the narrative of my life before anyone can construct it for me."e; In essays that range from the poignant to the side-splitting, Ryan takes us along as he grapples with addiction, navigates the early days of writing for online media in NYC, and uses his voice to gain entrance into the cutthroat world of Hollywood, where he becomes a sought-after writer and creator. In other essays he asks the very important question: "e;Are Straight People Okay?"e; (short answer is no), explores the battle between your IRL vs URL identity, and ruminates on the healing power of being gay and on vacation. Finally, Ryan opens up his committed relationship and becomes a slut for the first time, keeping a diary of his sexual misadventures, and bravely healing his soul through his hole.In the tradition of writers like Samantha Irby and David Sedaris, INSPIRATION PORN is a candid and often raunchy look at a life lived without apologies.

NOW a NETFLIX series entitled Special from Executive Producer JIM PARSONS starring RYAN O‘CONNELL as himself. From the beloved blogger turned voice of an online generation, an unforgettable and hilarious memoir-meets-manifesto exploring what it means to be a millennial gay man living with cerebral palsy, which VICE calls “a younger, gay version of Mary Karr''s Lit.”People are obsessed with Ryan O’Connell’s blogs. With tens of thousands reading his pieces on Thought Catalog and Vice, watching his videos on YouTube, and hanging on to each and every #dark tweet, Ryan has established himself as a unique young voice who’s not afraid to dole out some real talk. He’s that candid, snarky friend you consult when you fear you’re spending too much time falling down virtual k-holes stalking your ex on Facebook or when you’ve made the all-too-common mistake of befriending a psycho while wasted at last night’s party and need to find a way to get rid of them the next morning. But Ryan didn’t always have the answers to these modern-day dilemmas. Growing up gay and disabled with cerebral palsy, he constantly felt like he was one step behind everybody else. Then the rude curveball known as your twenties happened and things got even more confusing. Ryan spent years as a Millennial cliché: he had dead-end internships; dabbled in unemployment; worked in his pajamas as a blogger; communicated mostly via text; looked for love online; spent hundreds on “necessary” items, like candles, while claiming to have no money; and even descended into aimless pill-popping. But through extensive trial and error, Ryan eventually figured out how to take his life from bleak to chic and began limping towards adulthood. Sharp and entertaining, I’m Special will educate twentysomethings (or other adolescents-at-heart) on what NOT to do if they ever want to become happy fully functioning grown-ups with a 401k and a dog.

NOW a NETFLIX series entitled Special from Executive Producer JIM PARSONS starring RYAN O‘CONNELL as himself. From the beloved blogger turned voice of an online generation, an unforgettable and hilarious memoir-meets-manifesto exploring what it means to be a millennial gay man living with cerebral palsy, which VICE calls “a younger, gay version of Mary Karr''s Lit.”People are obsessed with Ryan O’Connell’s blogs. With tens of thousands reading his pieces on Thought Catalog and Vice, watching his videos on YouTube, and hanging on to each and every #dark tweet, Ryan has established himself as a unique young voice who’s not afraid to dole out some real talk. He’s that candid, snarky friend you consult when you fear you’re spending too much time falling down virtual k-holes stalking your ex on Facebook or when you’ve made the all-too-common mistake of befriending a psycho while wasted at last night’s party and need to find a way to get rid of them the next morning. But Ryan didn’t always have the answers to these modern-day dilemmas. Growing up gay and disabled with cerebral palsy, he constantly felt like he was one step behind everybody else. Then the rude curveball known as your twenties happened and things got even more confusing. Ryan spent years as a Millennial cliché: he had dead-end internships; dabbled in unemployment; worked in his pajamas as a blogger; communicated mostly via text; looked for love online; spent hundreds on “necessary” items, like candles, while claiming to have no money; and even descended into aimless pill-popping. But through extensive trial and error, Ryan eventually figured out how to take his life from bleak to chic and began limping towards adulthood. Sharp and entertaining, I’m Special will educate twentysomethings (or other adolescents-at-heart) on what NOT to do if they ever want to become happy fully functioning grown-ups with a 401k and a dog.

From the star of Peacock’s Queer as Folk and the Netflix series Special comes a “funny, tender, and beautiful” (Gary Janetti, New York Times bestselling author) novel following a gay TV writer with cerebral palsy as he fights addiction and searches for acceptance in an overwhelmingly ableist world.Elliott appears to be living the dream as a successful TV writer with a doting boyfriend. But behind his Instagram filter of a life, he’s grappling with an intensifying alcohol addiction, he can’t seem to stop cheating on his boyfriend with various sex workers, and his cerebral palsy is making him feel like gay Shrek. After falling down a rabbit hole of sex, drinking, and Hollywood backstabbing, Elliott decides to limp his way towards redemption. But facing your demons is easier said than done. “With his singular voice and unforgettable wit” (Steven Rowley, author of The Guncle), Ryan O’Connell presents a candid, biting, and refreshingly real commentary on gay life, laugh-out-loud exploration of self, and a rare insight into life as a person with disabilities.

From the star of Peacock’s Queer as Folk and the Netflix series Special comes a “funny, tender, and beautiful” (Gary Janetti, New York Times bestselling author) novel following a gay TV writer with cerebral palsy as he fights addiction and searches for acceptance in an overwhelmingly ableist world.Elliott appears to be living the dream as a successful TV writer with a doting boyfriend. But behind his Instagram filter of a life, he’s grappling with an intensifying alcohol addiction, he can’t seem to stop cheating on his boyfriend with various sex workers, and his cerebral palsy is making him feel like gay Shrek. After falling down a rabbit hole of sex, drinking, and Hollywood backstabbing, Elliott decides to limp his way towards redemption. But facing your demons is easier said than done. “With his singular voice and unforgettable wit” (Steven Rowley, author of The Guncle), Ryan O’Connell presents a candid, biting, and refreshingly real commentary on gay life, laugh-out-loud exploration of self, and a rare insight into life as a person with disabilities.