Jeffrey Koterba was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and during the summer before his senior year of high school, he was struck by lightning. Instead of taking him to the hospital, his dad gave him his first shot of Jack Daniels.

An award-winning cartoonist for the Omaha World-Herald, his work is syndicated to 850 newspapers worldwide, and has appeared in publications such as The New York Times, the Washington Post, and USA Today. His cartoons have also been exhibited in the U.S. and in Europe alongside Picasso, and in the Austrian embassy in Paris. His original drawings have also traveled around the globe on board space shuttle Discovery.

For his video series for CBS affiliate KMTV he has been a Heartland Emmy Award finalist twice. In his previous TEDx talk, he connects Tourette’s Syndrome, vulnerability, and creativity.

His memoir, Inklings, traces Koterba’s path on his journey to become a cartoonist, and more so, to rediscover the love of his family. Entertainment Weekly called Inklings “… a powerful and moving portrait of an artist.”

He is a lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter for his swing band, Prairie Cats, which has performed at the South by Southwest Music Festival and beyond.