Born in North Carolina, and raised in the Interior of British Columbia, Ian is a veteran screenwriter, showrunner and novelist. After high school, he spent four years as a newspaper reporter, culminating in a stint in Ottawa with Thomson Newspapers’ Parliamentary Bureau. Deciding that he would rather write drama, he left to study English at the University of BC and Medieval Literature at King’s College, University of London – an adventure that opened the door to writing radio drama for the BBC.

Returning to Canada, Ian spent several years in the theatre world as a playwright before gravitating to television – and loving it. His credits as a creator/showrunner include the high-flying adventure drama Arctic Air, starring Adam Beach, and the multiple award-winning gangland miniseries Dragon Boys, which featured an international cast headed by Byron Mann, Eric Tsang and Tzi Ma. He was also the creator/showrunner of the long-running teen drama series Edgemont – his first opportunity to work with Kristin Kreuk, who now stars in Murder in a Small Town alongside Rossif Sutherland. Otherwise, he has written nearly 150 episodes for two dozen series in Canada and the US, ranging from ReBoot to Flashpoint to One Life to Live. He is also the author of three novels; these include Will Starling, nominated for the International Dublin Literary Award.