Jeff Howard was born in rural Minnesota and was greatly influenced by his surroundings and people around him. He captured the sights and sounds of Minnesota along with its people in a syndicated newspaper column as well as published narrative essays and poetry about life in the rural north. Later he became a high school language arts teacher and taught writing skills and literature classes. Soon after he began his education career, Howard earned his license in counseling and concluded his career as a school counselor.
His exposure to his students' life experiences and the many challenges they face today bought him in a new direction. After a series of student suicides, Howard sensed the frustration of ineffective mental health programming and support for fragile students. He began advocating for changes in how schools and communities address mental health and suicide programming for teens. Howard became a familiar speaker at education conferences and published professional articles. His most significant work is the release of the young adult novel Screw You Van Gogh, a story that reveals the futility and regretfulness of teen suicide.