John Banim (3 April 1798 – 30 August 1842), was an Irish novelist, short story writer, dramatist, poet and essayist, sometimes called the "Scott of Ireland."

He also studied art, working as a painter of miniatures and portraits, and as a drawing teacher, before dedicating himself to literature.

At age five, Banim was sent to the English Academy at Kilkenny where his older brother Michael (1796–1874) was a student.

After five years at the English Academy, John Banim was sent to a seminary run by a Reverent Magrath, considered to be the finest Roman Catholic school in Ireland.

[3] After a year at the seminary, Banim transferred to another academy run by a teacher named Terence Doyle.

As a boy, he invented a birthday tradition where he would gather all of his writings from the previous year, re-read them critically, and then burn the ones he found lacking.

[4] At age 13, Banim entered Kilkenny College, where he devoted himself specially to drawing and miniature painting.

He pursued his artistic education for two years in the schools of the Royal Dublin Society, and afterwards taught drawing in Kilkenny.

In 1820, the artists were granted their charter, and they gave an address and a considerable sum of money to Banim for his support.

While in Kilkenny, he lodged in the home of a close friend of his father, a man named John Ruth.

[4] In 1822, he planned, in conjunction with Michael, a series of tales illustrative of Irish life, which should be for Ireland what the Waverley Novels were for Scotland;[2] the influence of his model is distinctly traceable in his writings.

"[4] Banim published a volume of miscellaneous essays anonymously in 1824, called Revelations of the Dead Alive.

[4] After the publication of Tales of the O'Hara Family, John began work on his novel The Boyne Water, a story of Protestant – Catholic relations during the Williamite War.

He travelled back to Ireland, spending time in Derry and Belfast, to do research on the novel, which was published in 1826.

Upon visiting John in London, in the summer of 1826, Michael found that his brother's illness had aged him and made him appear much older than his 28 years.

The Mayor of Windgap, and The Ghost Hunter (both by Michael Banim), The Denounced (1830) and The Smuggler (1831) followed in quick succession, and were received with considerable favour.

Most of these deal with the darker and more painful phases of life, but the feeling shown in his last, Father Connell, is brighter and more tender.

In 1828 John's novel The Anglo-Irish of the Nineteenth Century was published anonymously, but wasn't well received by critics or the public.

His son's birth improved John's state of mind after the death of his mother, but it also placed him in deeper financial need.

He stayed in Paris throughout 1834, doing what writing he was capable of and spending time in the society of the distinguished literary men of the city.

He was often in pain and had to use opiates to sleep, but during the short intervals between the attacks of his illness, he was able to enjoy conversation and the company of his brother and friends.

[4] His strength lies in the delineation of the characters of the Irish lower classes, and the impulses, often misguided and criminal, by which they are influenced, and in this he showed remarkable power.