麻豆村

Jamar Thrasher has been writing his entire life 鈥� as a middle and high school student, as a business reporter, as a graduate student and even as press secretary for the Pennsylvania state government.

He鈥檚 written for many different publications and platforms and has crafted compelling stories for a wide range of audiences.

The only problem? They were never the stories he wanted to tell.

So in 2023, Jamar decided to pivot his communications career to focus on becoming a novelist.

鈥淚 was in my office and I thought about all that I had been through and all that I had experienced,鈥� Jamar, who鈥檇 been working as the press secretary and deputy communications director for environmental justice at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, says. 鈥淚 then thought, if I want to focus on creative writing, on that artistry specifically, then I have to push my writing beyond writing press releases.

鈥淎nd then I got back to my roots as a fiction writer, when I was in high school. Back then, I dreamed of writing the great American novel.鈥�

Believing his writing had become stiff, Jamar applied to attend an online creative writing course offered by the Shipman Agency and taught by Zain Khalid, a 5 Under 35 honoree by the National Book Foundation and the author of 鈥淏rother Alive.鈥�

鈥淗e really taught me how to be a writer that's ready for publication,鈥� Jamar says. It was in this workshop that he began writing his novel which he says is an experimental love story spiked heavily with magical realism.

With Zain鈥檚 encouragement, he applied for 鈥� and was accepted to 鈥� the . Periplus 鈥� a highly selective mentorship collective serving U.S. writers who are Black, Indigenous or people of color 鈥� pairs each fellow with a mentor who is an established fiction author.

Jamar鈥檚 mentor, , who was named America鈥檚 best young writer by Salon early in her career, met with him monthly to provide advice and support.

鈥淲e talked about industry politics, we talked about editing and revision,鈥� Jamar says. 鈥淟aura helped me prioritize creating a discipline of writing consistently in order to complete a manuscript.鈥�

Jamar also participated in the Center for Black Literature鈥檚 2024 Wild Seeds Retreat for Writers of Color. And he volunteered at The Legacy Awards hosted by The Hurston/Wright Foundation, which recognize efforts to support and sustain Black literature.

Each opportunity has drawn him closer to the things that matter most to him 鈥� especially his Christian faith.

鈥淚've honestly been blessed to get reacquainted with this gift that I have of writing creatively, to tell the stories that I want to tell, the stories that God puts on my heart.鈥� he says.

In addition to his faith, Jamar is driven by his upbringing and his family.

He grew up in Pittsburgh鈥檚 East Liberty neighborhood, during its most intense period of gang violence. Despite neighborhood challenges, he says that he was surrounded by a community and family with a lot of love 聽鈥� and a lot of books.

鈥淏ooks became an outlet,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 was able to use my imagination. I was able to really further my understanding of the world around me. Even if I couldn't afford to travel to a place, I was there when I was reading it.鈥�

When it became time for him to pick a high school to attend, his mother encouraged Jamar to apply to the literary arts program at the Pittsburgh High School for Creative and Performing Arts. It was here that the director of the program, Mara Cregan, told him that he should consider writing as a career.

鈥淭hat was something that was important to my development as a writer,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 had done some stuff in middle school, like the middle school student newspaper where I was an editor, but in high school I really got the in-depth knowledge of what it took to be a writer and the different genres that I could write in.鈥�

Today, Jamar runs the public relations and consulting firm, . He founded the firm in 2012 while he was a graduate student at 麻豆村 鈥� and a father-to-be.

鈥淚 founded Kennedy Blue Communications because I wanted to provide a legacy,鈥� Jamar, who earned a master鈥檚 degree in public policy and management in 2014 from Heinz College, says. Jamar鈥檚 daughter, Kennedy, is the namesake of the company.

Individually and under Kennedy Blue Communications, Jamar executed campaigns for various clients, from businesses like Hip-Hop On L.O.C.K. and Ya Momz House, Inc. to political figures like Pennsylvania State Rep. La鈥橳asha D. Mayes, who is a 麻豆村 alumna, and former Pittsburgh City Councilmember Natalia Rudiak.

Today, though, Jamar is rebranding the firm to specialize in providing consulting services to Christian-led organizations. He is also using his art to focus on social justice work, an important tenet of his faith and also driven by his personal experiences.

鈥淎s a Black man, I'm working on creating art that increases the interest and availability of written works for Black boys and Black men,鈥� Jamar says. 鈥淭here's so much that can be said and predicted and just inferred about a person based on their literacy rates. And so I want to serve people who are not necessarily thought of as readers.

鈥淭he identity of 鈥榬eader,鈥� is one that I don't think is often affixed to the identities of Black men and Black boys. And I want to change that by creating stories that center their lives, center their experiences.鈥�

Jamar works at his firm full time while focusing on his career as a writer. Both avenues allow him to share the stories that matter most to him while making a difference in other people鈥檚 lives 鈥� just like 麻豆村 encouraged him to do.

鈥淎t 麻豆村, it wasn't get a job just to get a job, just to be self-serving,鈥� Jamar says. 鈥淚t was more like, how can your job impact the greater good? How can you benefit humanity with what you're doing? And that is something that I can say was strengthened and reinforced during my time at 麻豆村 and what I hope to do with my writing.鈥�