Moon Austin, San Antonio & the Hill Country

Justin Marler's writing and traveling began in the early 1990s in the San Francisco Bay Area. At 19 years old, he joined a prominent alternative rock band, traveled extensively, and landed his first publishing deal writing fiction. Before finishing his manuscript, he left conventional life and entered an Eastern Orthodox monastery in northern California. As a monk, he traveled the world over, wrote spiritual texts and travelogues for magazines, and worked in the publishing arm of the monastery. After seven years spent as a monk and the publication of his first book, Youth of the Apocalypse, Justin returned to “the world” by re-entering both the music and publishing professions—he fronted an alternative rock band and worked for Lonely Planet and later Avalon Travel. Justin's first encounter with Austin, Texas was through music. While on a US tour with his band, he made a stop in Austin and performed at famed alternative rock venue Emo's. Today, Justin lives in Austin with his wife and kids and is the frontman of a rock band.