I've always been a sucker for a good story. The funny ones. The ridiculous ones. The ones that sneak up on you and leave you thinking about them days later. I write, perform and tell stories, usually with a little humour involved.

I write because I am endlessly fascinated by people, by the absurdity of life, and by the things that make us laugh when we probably ought to be crying.

My first show, Dave Millen Presents, was a semi-biographical romp through the joys, indignities and occasional disasters of trying to make a life in theatre. It was hilarious, a little self-deprecating, and, underneath it all, surprisingly tender. It was also the beginning of something I’ve come back to again and again: telling stories that can make an audience laugh and then quietly sneak up on their heart.

I've written plays, cabarets, songs, columns and all sorts of things that probably seemed like a good idea at the time.

Shed was inspired by my mother and by my own life. Bring the tissues.

I Shaved My Legs for This? was considerably less emotionally responsible, embracing the camp, silliness and sheer ridiculousness of cabaret.

Whorific gave Sydni Rivers a stage of her own, featuring her particular brand of bawdy brilliance.

And through Dudettes, I wrote several cabarets built around two men singing songs traditionally written for women, because apparently that needed to happen.

I've also written for the Cape Breton Post and have had the rather surreal experience of being written about in the Globe and Mail. But whether it appears in a newspaper, on a stage, or in a cabaret dress with questionable amounts of glitter, the impulse is pretty much the same.

I like stories with a point of view. I like characters who are complicated. I like humour that comes from something real, and sentiment that doesn't take itself too seriously.

Most of all, I like making people feel something.

Preferably while they're laughing.