James Newman

James Newman is a British writer, filmmaker, and cultural commentator based in Bangkok.

He holds an MA in Victorian Gothic: History, Literature, and Culture from the University of Portsmouth, where his postgraduate research focused on the agency and self-representation of Chang and Eng Bunker, the original Siamese Twins, within the Victorian freak show, as well as Robert Louis Stevenson’s exploration of addiction and duality in Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

As a filmmaker and journalist, Newman has produced films and documentaries such as Crazy Medicine and Bangkok: City of Angels, directed music videos for Bangkok-based bands, contributed to the Bangkok Post, Noir Nation, Remote Lands, and has been featured in The Diplomat. His novel The Boy Who Played Chequers explores consciousness, simulation theory, and the afterlife through a metaphysical lens.

Earlier in his career, he wrote under the pen name J.D. Strange, creating the Joe Dylan noir detective series and other pulp works that were translated into several languages and optioned for film.

Across fiction, film, and nonfiction, Newman’s writing is united by a fascination with psychological transformation, altered states, and the human mind under pressure.