Get to Know the Author: Jen Stephens
"Jen Stephens bursts on the literary scene with a warmth and charm that shines through her writing right into the reader's heart."
~Kathi Macias, award-winning author of My Son, John.
Jen Stephens grew up in a small Ohio town where she developed a passion for writing at an early age. She participated in Young Authors contests in grade school, wrote her first novel in high school, and wrote dozens of poems and short stories in between. She majored in elementary education with a concentration in English and the humanities at the University of Toledo. Jen lives in the Nashville, Tennessee, area with her husband and two beautiful daughters. She teaches third grade at a Christian school and is active in her church. A member of Middle Tennessee Christian Writers and Nashville Christian Writers Association, she writes in her "spare" time. Her first novel, The Heart's Journey Home, released in February 2010. Her second book - the next installment in the Harvest Bay Series - The Heart's Lullaby, will release in October 2011
25 Random Tidbits: 25 Random Tidbits:
1. I was born and raised near Sandusky, Ohio. It was great except for in the summertime when Cedar Point opened and traffic was a nightmare!
2. I am second out of four girls, and my three sisters are also my very best friends!
3. My school was so small I went to grades K-12th all in the same building. A breezeway separated the elementary from the high school. I LOVED it!
4. I have been married to Chris for 12 years! We never really dated. He already lived in Nashville and I was still in Ohio. We decided we liked each other in September, got engaged in December, and married the very next December!
5. We have two beautiful little girls - Alison (10) and Olivia (7) - who are exact opposites. Ali has straight hair and Livi has tight corkscrew curls . . . and that's just where the differences begin!
6. Alison was born with a cleft palate. We've been through a lot with her - surgeries, ear tubes, speech therapy, etc. She's still a typical little girl, but with the determination of a prize fighter. I admire her SOOO much!
7. I'm a total country girl. I'm talking walking barefoot out to the garden to pick and eat a tomato standing right there!
8. Along those lines, I was in 4-H for several years and raised rabbits - New Zealands and Californians. I got grandchampion showmanship on a pretty little Californian named Daisy the first year I showed. I can still "flip" one to this day! And I still remember the DREAD of having to feed and water 30+ rabbits!
9. I'm a teacher. I teach 3rd grade in the best Christian school in the whole world! I really love going to work! I'm so blessed that way.
10. When I'm not teaching (or being a wife or mama) I am a writer. My first "real" book, The Heart's Journey Home, was released in Feb 2010. The next one in the series, The Heart's Lullaby, is tentatively scheduled for fall of 2011.
11. One of my many flaws is that I'm a terrible, and I mean TERRIBLE, house keeper! I especially hate the laundry. It never ends! Think about it. Even when you've done every stitch of clothes in the house, you're still wearing something, right???
12. I wish I was organized, but I'm not, and I despise people that are! Just kiddin'!
13. I've read lots and lots of great books (Visit www.sheafhouse.com for a long list of wonderful reads!) but my very favorite book ever is the Bible. Really, it's the greatest love story ever written. Can't get better than that!Charlotte's Web gets the second place ribbon. It's a classic story of the beauty of true friendship. *Sigh!*
14. My very favorite movie of all time is Forrest Gump! A close second is The Miracle Worker (the original with Patty Duke), and coming in at third would have to beSteel Magnolias.
15. My favorite food is my Grandma Dominick's spaghetti. It's the best! A close second is my husband's bar-b-que. Mmmmm. My mouth is watering just thinking about them!
16. I yell at other drivers while I'm driving. Not the best example for my girls, I know. I'm working on it . . . kind of.
17. My biggest pet peeve is people who chew with their mouths open. That's just . . . ewww! Also, I just can't take liars, hypocrits, and gossips.
18. My biggest addiction is coffee! Seriously. I have a problem.
19. I am a true romantic. I mean fairytale romantic. It's sad, I know, because in this day and age I'm setting myself up for disappointment, but I'm a sucker for a great love story.
20.I have a "bucket list" some of which includes: going whale watching in Alaska, visiting Pearl Harbor, and bringing in a new year in Times Square.
21. I have recurrent nightmares about two things: tornadoes, and flying in an airplane. (Makes #20 a challenge, I know.)
22. I've been cross country skiing, down hill skiing, and water skiing and I'm not good at any of them! (Guess that's the reason God didn't give us skis as feet!)
23. Speaking of feet, mine are the worst ever! Flat, flat, flat with bunyons, and . . . well, do I really need to go on?
24. Speaking of skis, Chris and I 3oneymooned at Lake Tahoe which is a winter wonderland in December, but is NOT where I downhill skied. We ice skated on the Olympic rink and snow shoed through a state park. It was sweet!
25. Last one. Hmmmm. I really think that I'm just an ordinary gal who has been richly blessed by the many extraordinary people in her life.
