The Acclaimed Author of "Paper Dolls of the East,” "The House at the End of the World," "The Hour Between the Dog and Wolf,” and the forthcoming novel
"THE TEMPLE KEEP."
Guitarist for the mega-group Bad Penny, feat. Judas Priest's Rob Halford.
Visual Artist.
Mike Holtzman
Stories & News
"The Temple Keep," Mike Holtzman's debut novel, hits shelves on October 21, 2026. The mind-bending tale blends real hidden history, ciphers in Shakespearean texts, tunnels beneath America's oldest college building, and mysterious architecture to reveal a secret so explosive it could change human destiny.
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Mike Holtzman's Harrowing Story "The House at the End of the World," is Published in the Spring 2020 Issue of Solstice Literary Magazine! Read it: https://solsticelitmag.org/content/the-house-at-the-end-of-the-world/
"I am so taken with this story, with the language, with the prose poetry, and the moving way Holtzman depicts the flood," said Solstice Editor-in-Chief Lee Hope Betcher. "I love the range he shows in his work."
“Mike Holtzman brings us a story not just for our time….but for all time. Relevant, passionate and accessible story-telling that tackles head-on some of today’s biggest challenges – race and climate change. This is clearly a writer to be watched….and read.” -Brian F. Keane, Author, “Green is Good”
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"Paper Dolls of the East,” is Named a Finalist for the Tucson Festival of Books' Literature Prize and Wins Accolades from Lorian Hemingway and Glimmer Train!
Man Booker Prize Winner Paul Beatty selected Mike Holtzman's latest short story, "Paper Dolls of the East," for the summer 2019 issue of the literary magazine Solstice, and awarded it one of the magazine's highest honors in its annual literary competition. Describing the harrowing tale of Syrian refugees, Beatty said, "Mike uses fragments to reveal a Syrian refugee camp at the Lebanese border and the painful choice a mother makes to sell one daughter as a sex slave in order to save another daughter who is handicapped. TRULY UNFORGETTABLE."
"Paper Dolls of the East" was also named a Finalist for the Tucson Festival of Books' Literature Prize. The well-received story has also received "Honorable Mentions" from Lorian Hemingway and by Glimmer Train, one of the most prominent American journals for art and literature.
"The girl peers through a hole in the sun-bleached blue polythene wrap that doesn’t do much to keep out the rain and the cold which come more often in this squalid valley than they did back home just over the mountains. Those jagged peaks once three days beneath her feet are now two days walk behind her, a forbidding ridge at the edge of camp that splits her life in two uneven parts one teeming with the simple delights and rituals of childhood, the other littered with despair that collects spoils and spreads under thousands of flimsy tents pitched across an unwanted patch of useless landscape." --from Mike Holtzman's "Paper Dolls of the East"
Read it Here!
"The Temple Keep," Mike's debut novel.
Sculpture and Paintings
A evolving gallery of painting, sculpture and mixed media creations.
“Mick Jagger” (2019) Vector illustration/LEGO bricks.
“The World Turned Upside Down" (2019) . Sculpture/electrical.
"Bottled Blossoms" (2009). Oil.
"Lilting Vase" (2009). Oil.
"Orange Popcicle #4" (2018)
"The Ramones" (2018) Oils/wash.
"MLK" (2019). Vector paint and LEGO bricks.
“Flowers” (2022). Oil on wood panel.
“Portal” (2022). Oil on wood panel.
“Devolution” (2022). Mixed media on wood panel.
“Flowers” (2024). Mixed media on canvas.
“WTF MTV” (2024). Mixed imedia and neon on wood panel.
“Fantasy Landscape” (2024). Acrylic on canvas.
Mike Holtzman
Mike Holtzman is an acclaimed author of short fiction, a multimedia artist, a filmmaker, and the leader of the rock supergroup “Bad Penny,” which features musicians known for their work with Judas Priest, Journey, Queen, Cheap Trick, Twisted Suster, Blue Oyster Cult, Living Colour, and Queensryche.
Mike is also an an operating advisor to the pioneering private equity firm Pegasus, which promotes environmental sustainability and social and economic development around the world. He also leads Rally International Public Affairs, which advises governments and leading figures in Latin America, Europe, and Asia. Mike helped guide China's winning bid to host the 2008 Summer Olympic Games and Vancouver's successful campaign to host the 2010 Winter Games. He helped Ayad Allawi become Iraq's first post-Saddam Hussein Prime Minister. He conceived of and shepherded passage of World Autism Awareness Day at the United Nations. He has won all of the PR industry's major awards including being named "PR Person of the Year" by PR Week Magazine. Mike has served in two Presidential Administrations, first in the Executive Office of the President of the United States as an Advisor to the US Trade Ambassador. Subsequently he was an Advisor to the Director of Policy Planning Staff at the United States Department of State, where he focused on Middle East Affairs. Previously, he was Director of Public Affairs at the Council on Foreign Relations. Mike Holtzman’s non-fiction writing on international affairs has appeared in the New York Times and other noted publications.
Mike is a musician, author, artist and filmmaker who is inspired by the people he has met and the places he has been. Please enjoy his page!
Connect With Mike!
Email
https://www.instagram.com/mike.holtzman/
Photo Gallery
Bushwick, Brooklyn. August 2019 (Photo Credit: Julia Sariy)
Up on the Roof. August 2019. (Photo Credit: Julia Sariy)
Dreamland. May, 2020.
Vamping with Abigail Rose at Elton John’s Academy Awards Party
