Joseph M. Monks (born February 21, 1968, Queens, New York, U.S.) was an American writer and the world's first visually impaired feature film director, best known for co-creating the cult phenomena horror comic book, Cry For Dawn.

Notable creators published by CFD included Dan Brereton (in That Chemical Reflex, 1994), Brian Michael Bendis (in Noir Quarterly, 1995), and John Cassaday (in No Profit for the Wise, 1996).

Monks closed down CFD Productions in 1997 and started up Chanting Monks Studios in 1998, launching titles such as The Night Terrors, also featuring Bernie Wrightson and William Stout; Gory Lori, a modern-day zombie apocalypse series illustrated by Jeff Salisbury and Mike Koneful; and the horror anthology Zacherley's Midnight Terrors, a tribute to TV horror host John Zacherle, with art by the likes of Basil Gogos, Ken Kelly, and William Stout.

Titled Flowers on the Razorwire: Chance Meeting, directed by Hart D. Fisher, the work was intended to be used as a Japanese television pilot but was instead released as a stand-alone DVD under CPI Home Video and Chanting Monks Press.

Kevin Smith and Ralph Garman talked about the project on their podcast Hollywood Babble-On and contributed the final funds needed to reach the goal.