About Stephen

The Unconventional Path

I’m Stephen Lloyd Webber, and I write novels and prose poetry about consciousness, technology, and the beautiful absurdity of being human. My path here has been a squiggly line.

For a decade, I led Writing Immersion retreats in Italy, Bali, and the Caribbean—holding space for writers to discover their authentic voices in villa libraries and beachside pavilions. There’s nothing quite like being a part of a group working to break through their creative barriers while overlooking the Tuscan hillside or hearing the Indian Ocean at dawn.

When the pandemic hit, I did what any reasonable writing coach would do: I learned to code. I dove into computer science and worked professionally as a software engineer and in crypto. While my contemporaries were baking sourdough and earning their way toward tenured professorship, I was debugging microservices and contemplating the intersection of human and AI. Though I’ve returned to writing full-time, that technical immersion profoundly shaped how I think about consciousness, systems, and the stories we tell ourselves about progress.

The Work

Books That Ask Questions

My writing takes on weird scenarios:

  • A satirical road trip through privilege, purposelessness, and what happens when you discover that everyone around you—from your meth-cooking neighbor to your landlord’s ex-wife—has deeper agendas than they let on. (The God Pot)
  • What if consciousness itself could be harvested as energy? (Revolt in Steel Meadow, as Harlan Hunt)
  • What if losing your pants could lead to enlightenment? (Pants in the Tree)

My poetry and essays have appeared in Yellow Medicine, Free Verse, and The Atlantic. I write about the intersection of technology and humanity, the comedy of modern existence, and the unexpected paths to meaning.

Beyond the Page

When I’m not writing, you’ll find me at the pottery wheel, creating functional art at Devotion Pottery. I love working with clay—the physical relationship between intention and form, the alchemy of fire and earth. Each mug and bowl is a meditation on presence.

I earned my MFA in Creative Writing from New Mexico State University and a certificate in Advanced Software Development from Code Fellows. I’ve narrated audiobooks, written genre fiction under other names, and built an off-grid retreat center in Northern California where I lived for several years before returning to Texas.

What Drives Me

The Writing Life

I believe in:

  • Deep work over busy work – It’s better to write for three focused hours than to spend all day in half-measures. Have adventures and take care of yourself. Live to write another day.
  • Process over product – The journey transforms you more than any destination. What will fuel you more than any goal is the love of the craft and the desire to offer your utmost gift to the world.
  • Community over competition – Writing doesn’t have to be solitary suffering. I love to be alone, but deep connection with other artists is the very best thing there is.
  • Authenticity over optimization – Your weird is your superpower. Go real or go home.

Influences & Inspirations

Some of the writers and artists who’ve shaped my work:

Literary: Walt Whitman’s expansiveness, Denis Johnson’s wild precision, Russell Edson’s surreal wisdom, Henri Michaux’s experimental courage, Kurt Vonnegut’s direct voice, Thomas Pynchon’s flights of brilliance

Visual: Marty Avrett’s mastery of fundamentals, Ed Ruscha’s conceptual playfulness, Cy Twombly’s gestural poetry, David Shrigley’s profound oversimplicity

Philosophical: Keith Critchlow’s sacred geometry, Paul Reps’ Zen accessibility, Shunryu Suzuki’s beginner’s mind

I’m fascinated by prose poetry in all its forms—that liminal space where narrative and lyricism dance together.

Current Projects

Writing

  • Finishing The God Pot (literary fiction)
  • Revising Starseed Flux (science fiction)
  • Developing Cosmosis (science fiction)
  • Weekly essays for TMMW!

Teaching

I work one-on-one with writers who are ready to:

  • Transform their relationship with creativity
  • Develop their authentic voice
  • Build sustainable writing practices
  • Navigate the self-publishing landscape
  • Create meaningful work in a noisy world

Learn more about coaching

The Deeper Current

I write TMMW! (That Made My Week!) to create a virtual community for people who believe creativity and independence matter. Each week, I explore what it means to live authentically in an increasingly artificial world—whether that’s choosing meditation over optimization, pottery over productivity, or inner versus outer success.

Some recent explorations:

Subscribe to TMMW!

Let’s Connect

I love hearing from readers, writers, and fellow travelers on the creative path.

Email: stephen@tmmw.io
Location: Texas (and Thailand)
Currently Reading: Suttree by Cormac McCarthy

Sign up for my mailing list to hear about upcoming books.

Ready to Start Your Writing Journey?

Whether you’re looking for coaching, curious about my books, or just want to talk about the creative life, I’d love to hear from you.

Work With Me • Read Pants in the Tree • Subscribe to My Mailing List