Adam Blackwell did his undergraduate work in Norwiche, England, in theater and film and his Master's at BYU. Blackwell won the Vera Hinckley Mayhew Playwriting Contest for his play, The Absent One. Another of Blackwell's plays, Blind Dates, was a finalist in the 1994 Siena International Playwrights Competition. Blackwell was the BYU Playwright of the Year for two years.