MEET THE MEMBERS

Jennifer Preiss has been a member of the Writers’ League of Texas since January and is registered for one of our fall classes. She lives outside the city limits of New Braunfels, in an area that she considers “the middle of nowhere.”

Scribe: In what genre(s) do you write?

Jennifer Preiss: Contemporary Romance….toying with New Adult.

Scribe: What authors would you like to have coffee or a beer with and which beverage?

JP: Kristin Hannah! She sold me with her book, Firefly Lane. After that I read every novel she wrote. Picking apart her brain to see how she comes up with her inspiration would be a dream. This may take quite a few coffees and alcoholic beverages!

Scribe: If you were stranded on a deserted island, what book would you want to have with you to keep you sane?

JP: I love Glennon Melton’s, Carry On Warrior. It made me laugh, cry and feel normal. As a mom, wife and woman there are times when I feel alone with my worries. She leveled me out.

Also, Leo Tolstoy’s, Anna Karenina would be a must have. They say it took him 4 years to write and this gives me hope that one day my novel will be complete. Plus, I love the intensity that he brings out with each scene.

And last but not least, Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah. The story of friendship that spans over a lifetime never gets old.

Scribe: What have you learned from your association with the Writers’ League?

JP: I could write a list a mile long on this. So, I will just give the highlights. 1.) I learned that I am not alone. There are other writers out there that feel the anguish, fear, and determination to put their words on paper. 2.) I learned opportunities exist everywhere but it is hard work and I should never give up.

I am glad my first step as a writer was to join the Writers’ League!

Scribe: Where do you see your writing taking you (or you taking it) in the future?

JP: I see my writing opening up. Does this make sense? Before this past year, I was barely scraping the surface of what I could do. Now I am just below the surface and excited at what I am learning about myself and my writing. I have hopes that I will be digging so deep that I will uncover layers of myself that I never knew existed.

Scribe: Is there anything else about you that you would like to share with the world? An opportunity for blatant self-promotion!

JP: Well, I think of my life as ordinary. I have always loved to write and it flourished when I discovered a Creative Writing course in high school. This is when I had my work published for the first time. I had never felt anything quite as satisfying! So, I carried on with writing but allowed life to take hold and put it on the back burner until a few years ago. I wrote about this on a blog post: Going Up.

Here is a Summary from my About Me Page from my Website:

Most days I compare my life to the infamous Green Acres sitcom.  Raised all my life in the suburbs of San Antonio, I was transplanted way past my comfort zone by my loving husband. In time, I stopped complaining (as much) and realized that our family benefitted from moving to BFE. I have been adjusting to country life and learning to appreciate the tranquility that the Texas Hill Country offers. Our property is not as rural as the farm Zsa Zsa Gabor was subjected to, although I do own a pair of stylish mud boots, and have occasionally walked a pig or two. (Surprisingly, no leashes are involved BTW.) Despite all the glamorous temptation, I am still a city girl at heart.

Writing has been my anchor since I was young. But with raising three kids I focused on living my life as a mom, a wife, and working an 8 to 5 job in the Business world. This meant stowing away the poetry, stories and parenthood memoirs until the time was right. I am a determined realist and recently admitted (out loud) that I needed to pursue my goals for myself, while I still had my sanity. So in December 2013, I decided to dive head first into my dream and knew the blogging world would be a good place to start.  I began planning Pen, Paper & Parenthood, which I launched in January 2014.

I am currently working on my novel, Waiting to Breathe. It is a work in progress and I am anxious to see where the characters take me.

In the rare moments of calm, you can find me snuggled up reading, watching my favorite TV drama (on DVR, of course), or sipping a glass of wine.  Yes, there are times when I multi-task and attempt all 3 simultaneously…and likely more than 1 glass of wine.