Well, hello there. Glad you stopped by.

I’m Jennifer. I taught high school history and English for a bunch of years. I was one of ‘those’ teachers. Projects. Field trips. Clubs. Plays. Fairs. If stuff was going on, I was in the middle of it. School turned out to be perfect for my event planning obsession. Now, I spend my days doing other teachery stuff. I go overboard there, too. We overzealous types really can’t help ourselves.

I spend my nights and weekends making up stuff and writing it down. Passion is useful for writing. Since it’s a self-contained sport, writing doesn’t wear out my tribe. (well, not much, anyway) I’m working on several projects. A few kissy books. A kid’s adventure story. A story about a girl and a bridge. The only common thread in these stories is me. My roots. My imagination. My perspective of the world.

You are most welcome to join me in the journey as I share these stories with the world. Find me on social media. I’m over there talking about something right now. Did I mention I’m a bit extra? 

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Let’s get this out in the open right now. I’m rather odd.

I’m not odd like Sheldon Cooper or Kristen Stewart. I’m odd in the sense I cannot possibly answer a direct question without dragging folks through the recesses of my mind, verifying the obvious — I have serious brevity issues. Thus, I hope you’re not disappointed but this “About” page is not my resume, where I’d drone on about all my good luck and infinite blessings. You can find a resume somewhere on the net if you need one. Fair warning: it’s probably old. I’m also a bit flighty. Updating resumes is a lot like eating leftovers. I steer clear of both.

So, about me.

As a kid, I talked to myself all the time. As an adult, I try not to because someone said adults weren’t supposed to do that. Unfortunately, I rarely wrote more than a few poems, journal entries (you know, deep thoughts of a brilliant teen), and some term papers. Turns out most of what I wrote wasn’t deep. Or interesting. Or brilliant. However, the worlds inside my head were. With age experience, the worlds became stories, complete with characters, plots, and themes. Today, I’ve grown passionate about assigning words to these stories.

Craft matters.

I’m drawn to certain challenges. Teaching has been my passion for twenty five years. I’m still fascinated by it, yet I’m no longer in the classroom with students. In order to master something, you have to practice it. A lot. Because I’m not with kids, my drive to polish my teaching craft has slowed. I’ve been writing for many years about my beloved profession, but it isn’t the same as writing about the worlds floating around in my head.

In 2010, I started writing contemporary fiction during the summers, the weekends, and every minute not with family, friends, or work. I began a new job in 2014 and my writing time slowed drastically. Yet in September 2015, I finally finished a draft of my first novel. Yep. I have a draft. I’ve been editing like a boss, killing dingbats and darlings with vengeance. I even designed a cover so when I export it to an ePub file to read on my iPad, it feels like a real book. My first beta readers gave me some fantastic feedback and I’ve made important revisions. Now? I’m writing the second book in this series. There will be three. And TONS more editing. Lots of editing. And maybe more books, if someone out there likes them as much as I do.

Back to craft matters.

I’m in no hurry to finish, or whatever that means. I do want to share the story when it’s ready because I’d really love to talk about this story with someone other than myself. For now, though, I’m focused on craft.

The writing craft has stolen my teaching soul. When I’m not writing, I’m thinking about writing, pinning stuff on my All About Writing Pinterest board, participating in Twitter chats with other writers, or making jewelry about my books, which is a girly girl’s way of thinking about her book. I’ve attended workshops, bought and read books on writing, and have a longer list of goals for learning this craft than ideas for new stories. And I have a gazillion story ideas. Basically, I’ve packed my bags for a new journey. I’m utterly thrilled and terrified by the challenge of mastering this craft. If you don’t want to quit what you’re doing a hundred times a day, then you aren’t doing something scary enough to be soul-soothingly satisfied when you finally do it well.

I’d love for you to come along for the ride. Join me, won’t you? I’m all over the net. Click on any of the buttons to the right to find me.

Thanks for your interest in me. Truly.

*Click here to follow my journey.