Iconoclast Writing was born in another dimension.

Collective Vision by Alex Grey

In 2020, when I was smoking DMT and searching for answers to life, I was told by the realm to create a school for writing. Although I had studied screenwriting at UCLA, sketch comedy writing at The Second City in Chicago, and Creative Writing at the University of Idaho, I thought it was a preposterous request because I didn’t consider myself a “real” writer.

In my mind, I needed a literary agent, a published book, and some financial success to give myself such a distinguished title.

It didn’t matter that I had spent my entire adult life writing blogs, essays, songs, screenplays, comedy sketches, movie reviews, plays, short stories, novels, news articles, and poems. None of this was enough.

Even after I self-published my first novel, Night Burger, in 2014, it didn’t count because it was self-published.

Despite my obvious hesitations, I came up with a name, built a website, and started posting content on social media. I gained some followers but failed to gain any interest in my creative writing workshops, so I put the business on hold.

In January 2022, I went through a breakup that ignited a healing journey involving plant medicine ceremonies, acupuncture, sacred sexuality retreats, meditation, psychedelic integration circles, yoga, hypnotherapy, reiki, and other healing modalities that took me to the depths of my soul.

It was through this healing journey that I began to see myself more clearly. Sure, my life wasn’t turning out any way I thought it would (I originally went to college to become a cop), but as the years passed, I was learning more and more about myself until—after lots of consistent inner work and, following the orders of Grandmother Ayahuasca, burying my DMT pipe on top of a mountain—I began to arrive at a place of self-acceptance.

In February 2025, I started attending a poetry open mic night, where I read poems I wrote while working at a taxidermy studio in Reno, Nevada, from 2019-2021. I thought the poems were some of my best work, so I applied to two writing fellowships, both of which I had applied to multiple times, starting in 2013.

My plan, if accepted, was to start Iconoclast Writing back up, using my credibility as a distinguished fellow of a distinguished institution to prove to the world I was a “real” writer and not some random, undistinguished lunatic.

In the spring of 2026, I was denied both fellowships. Rejection, at this point in my writing career, was nothing new, but rather than going on with my life and applying again in the fall, I was done waiting for someone to give me the green light to make my dreams a reality. I was also done suffering.

The constant comparison, negative self-talk, invasive and obsessive thoughts, stress, worry, doubt, indecision, and fear (that plagued me for decades and, I believe, caused my depression, anxiety, insomnia, and IBS) were no longer needed.

I wanted to be free.

I wanted to step into my power.

I wanted to escape the prison of my mind and dive, head first, into the infinite ocean of creativity, where I could become not only the writer but also the artist I always knew I was yet never fully gave myself permission to be.

Writing, I discovered, went far beyond my limited desire to get an agent, publish a book, and make some money. It was my entry into the world of art, where I learned craft, patience, and discipline. Years later, it was my entry into the world of healing, where I learned how to cultivate inner peace, embody my authentic self, and, finally, after 42 years, take the necessary steps to become the creator of my life.

Whether you consider yourself a writer or not, Iconoclast Writing helps people reconnect with Source and tap into their creative potential. We all possess the power to live the lives we want to live so long as we are willing to look inward, face our fears, and do the work.

If you’re ready to step into the unknown, I’d love to help guide you home.

Bio

Hello, I’m Jason Sarna!

I hold an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Idaho. Since 2018, I’ve been teaching at Reno Improv, where I served as Education Chair from 2023-2024 and founded the sketch comedy writing program. In addition to teaching, I produce and co-host the podcast Managing Love Intelligently and write for the Reno News & Review. I am currently rewriting a collection of taxidermy poetry.

You can view my CV here.