Adryan Russ is a Chicago-born writer, composer and lyricist. She is a first-generation American – her parents were born in Ukraine. After studying English and music at the Universi...view moreAdryan Russ is a Chicago-born writer, composer and lyricist. She is a first-generation American – her parents were born in Ukraine. After studying English and music at the University of Illinois, inspired by President John F. Kennedy’s call to ask not what our country can do for us, but what we can do for our country, she joined the Peace Corps and served two years in Medellín, Colombia. Her off-Broadway musical Inside Out, an engaging and entertaining visit with six women in group therapy, co-written with Doug Haverty, played the Cherry Lane in New York City, then across the U.S., in Europe and Belgrade, Serbia. Among other musicals she’s written, her newest, Empty Hands, is inspired by the work of Dr. Terrence Webster-Doyle’s special form of martial arts that has been changing lives around the world – teaching young people how to deal with bullies and all people how to live more peaceful lives. This is what has inspired her to write this book. Adryan lives in California with her husband Dale Alan Cooke.view less