Blog – Author Jen Meyers

Be the Change

It’s been a while, friends. And while I’ve mostly been busy making pottery, I’ve also been making more coloring books in reaction to the world falling apart around us. It has felt like too much, hasn’t it? The deplorable rise of white nationalism, the continued mistreatment and murder of Black folk, the erosion of the right to bodily autonomy for those of us with a uterus, the threats to our LGBTQ+ family, and the continued abuse of our planet and her resources with no care for future generations.

It has felt overwhelming. Disheartening. Frustrating. Infuriating. And when I start to feel that way, I know it’s time to take action. So I put together these beautiful, inspiring coloring books (an adult version and a family-friendly one) with the intent to donate part of the profits to organizations that are already working to make this world a better place.

Because we *have* to be the change. We are the only ones who can make it happen. Will you help me do just that? Click the covers to go to their Amazon pages, and read the book description below.

In a world where you can be anything…

Be the change.

Our world is a mess, and all the social, political, and environmental problems can sometimes feel overwhelming, insurmountable, and exhausting. But it takes every one of us to effect change, to keep fighting for what is right: An end to racist and sexist systems. Equality. Truth. Human rights. People over profit. A healthy planet.

It takes you—your voice, your actions—to change the world.

This coloring book was designed to inspire you to speak up, to stay focused, and to keep fighting until all the wrongs have been made right. Inside, you’ll find 63 beautiful, single-sided frameable designs with stirring messages to remind you of the power you hold, to embrace your outrage at the injustices of our society, and to channel it to effect change.

The world won’t change on its own. Policy won’t change. Society won’t change. Institutions won’t change. Not without you.

So BE the change.

*A portion of the proceeds from these books will be donated to nonprofit organizations that individually fight racism, empower BIPOC and women, support LGBTQ+, and work to solve the climate crisis.

Let’s do this, friends.

xo,
jen

By jen | September 4, 2022 | Blog |

In Which I Don’t Get Angry, I Get Working

Okay, that title’s not entirely true. I got angry. Blindingly, ragingly furious last week with the sham that was the Senate judiciary committee hearings and subsequent joke of an FBI investigation into the allegations of sexual assault by Brett Kavanaugh.

I hate that I was not entirely surprised he was confirmed given the shameful and disgraceful administration currently in power, but I was also angry, upset, and completely demoralized.

But then I fueled my anger into making change, making a difference. I had a coloring book that no one was buying (Love trumps Hate/Love *not* Hate) and decided it needed to be retired and transformed into Smash the Patriarchy and F*ck the Patriarchy. I got to work redesigning the pages, typing furiously, pulling art from a couple of the other coloring books because I had a LOT to say, a LOT I wanted to put into this book.

I decided to make two versions of the same coloring book so those of us who are feeling ALL the swears at this situation can color alongside our friends and family who might prefer the family-friendly version. We can color with our young daughters and sons, teaching them the evils of a patriarchal society so that they will grow up to fight for/support an equitable society and government, without teaching them ALL the swears, too. ;-)

And just like the F*ck Cancer coloring book, part of the profits from the sales of these two books will be donated to non-profit organizations that empower women. My current favorites include: She Should Run, Higher Heights for America, Emily’s List, and Girl Up. If YOU have favorites, please share them with me in the comments! I want to fund the downfall of the patriarchy as much as I can.

I hope you’ll join me. You can find them on Amazon.com.

Warmly,
jen

By jen | October 11, 2018 | Blog |

In Which I FINALLY Finish the Novel

Total Bliss is done! DONE. I typed the last word today, printed it out, and wrapped it up real pretty to hand off to my editor. Literally.

I wasn’t kidding.

hea #3, total bliss, happily ever after, series, romance, romantic comedy, jen meyers, book three I am so happy to have finished this book and finally have it on its way to getting into your hands. At the moment, I do not have a release date. But I can tell you that it likely won’t be before October in order to give my editor and beta readers plenty of time to send me their invaluable feedback.

But as soon as I know, you will know. Pinky promise.

Have a great weekend everyone!

xo,
jen

By jen | July 27, 2018 | Blog |

In which I introduce you to Flaky Bakers

If you’ve been around the blog for a while or follow me on Twitter or Instagram, then you know I love to bake. I have ALWAYS loved to bake, and it’s something I do on a weekly basis. As does my friend Bec, who I’ve known since college. We’ve been talking about starting a baking blog for YEARS, as we’ve shared secret, coveted recipes back and forth, drooled over each other’s photos of our creations, and really fueled each other’s baking obsessions. And we just figured it was TIME.

Time to finally share what we’ve learned over the years as self-taught bakers, time to share our most favorite recipes (and maybe some of our super secret ones), and time to share how we tweak new recipes to make them better. And to do it all in a silly, fun, not-even-a-little-serious manner. (Because life can be too serious already, and baking shouldn’t be.)

We’re baking for the fun of it.

So, I am happy to introduce you to Flaky Bakers! (Not long after we came up with the name, my 8yo started saying it with a Swedish accent, like the Swedish chef from the Muppets, and that’s officially how I always think our blog name now.)

There are already a bunch of great recipes up—a super quick, easy, and delicious chocolate cake, my everyday whole wheat bread (that I make every week), a fabulous apple cake (that I’m going to make this weekend because it looks SO good), the most amazingly decadent chocolatey, fudgy, chewy brownies, Bec’s gorgeous chocolate Chambord mini bundts, and the best pie I’ve ever made (fresh lime pie with lime-kissed whipped cream, OMG it’s incredible).

Plus more coming every week. If you want to make sure you don’t miss a recipe, you can subscribe to our blog to get the posts emailed to you. The sign-up is at the top of the right sidebar.

Seriously, go take a look. And bake something. You won’t be sorry. :-)

Warmly,
jen

By jen | March 13, 2018 | Blog |

We are ALL creative

My dad doesn’t think he’s creative. He doesn’t draw, sing, write, or dance. As far as I know, he has never tried to develop any artistic skill. He studied to become an electrical engineer in college and spent his entire work-life at one technological company. After he retired, he became an EMT and has worked on an ambulance crew or in an ER ever since. He is very mechanically minded and can fix just about anything.

And he is SURE he does not have a drop of creativity in his blood.

Of course, he MacGyvers things ALL the time. Like, he designed and built a floating coal bin when I was a kid, he built custom cabinets for his kitchen (even though he’s not a carpenter), he’s totally rigged up his motorhome with numerous improvements that use the space better and improve on the overall design and utility. Almost every time I see him, he’s telling me about some improvement he’s made, something he’s built/designed/figured out how to make better/easier/simpler. Not everything he’s dreamed up has worked, but that’s true of every creative person. But on a cellular level, this man is driven to solve problems and come up with solutions.

And even though he’s one of the most creative people I know, he is positive he’s not creative.

My mom is an incredible artist, and perhaps because he sees the beauty she creates with pencils and pastels, he equates that with creativity, but not his own strengths and skills.

But here’s the thing: creativity comes in all colors, shapes and sizes. It’s not just related to the arts. It’s about making. It’s about solving problems. It’s about thinking outside the box and coming up with a new or different way of doing things. It’s about figuring things out, whether that’s on watercolor paper, on stage, in a kitchen, or in a laboratory or workshop. It’s about making something new—whether that’s with yarn, paint, words, electrical wiring, wood, cells, pipes, or flour and sugar.

We are ALL creative. We all have that capacity. All the inventions of humankind? THAT’s creativity. Human history is drenched in it.

It’s who ALL of us are.

So go ahead and stake claim to your own inner creative force—whatever way, shape, or form it takes. It’s there, I promise you.

Warmly,
jen

By jen | February 6, 2018 | Blog |

Five Things

1. My teen writing classes are AMAZING. I am loving working with these kids so much, I can’t even tell you. My two teens have surprised me with their turnaround on writing—this is the class I wish I’d had when I was in high school. It’s the class I wish every teen could have now because these kids are finding their confidence, their voices, and they want to write. I LOVE that.

At the end of the semester, we produced a class magazine that is so full of goodness…my writerly heart is bursting with all the happy words. I wish I could share that with you. But I can share their writings that I posted on our group’s blog about a month ago, and you should totally check them out. Here is the full list of posts. Be prepared, you guys. They’re awesome.

2. Total Bliss (take 2) is coming along BEAUTIFULLY, omg. From the moment I started chapter one over, I knew this was the absolute right decision. It is SO much better, so much more of what I had in mind when I started the first time. I’m trying to carve out time most days to write (and have been *mostly* successful at that) and am feeling so inspired.

3. Add to that the inspiration (and overall gratefulness and teary-happiness) I feel when I get comments like this from people who like my books:

Her original post was about Sarah Title’s books (which I haven’t read yet, but will), and I LOVED what she said about them SO much. Those are the most important aspects of my stories, too. I think we need Smart/Strong Women heroines who don’t put up with anyone’s nonsense and Nice Guy heroes because they’re the best kind of guy to fall for. So I had all the hearts for her post. And when she said that sweet thing about my books? Literally tears in my eyes. <3

It means SO much—I really cannot express what comments like this do to me. And for me. It’s incredible.

4. I am participating in an online summit in February called Warrior Woman 2018, and I couldn’t be more excited about it. It’s a free online event hosted by Anna Acuña, and it’s all about the powerful practices that an incredible lineup of 22 badass women use to find focus, fuel their creativity, and find inspiration to live life on their own terms. It’s happening February 12-25, and you’ll have access to all of their interviews and some great giveaways. Sign up here!

5. My up-coming baking blog is coming together, I am baking like mad, figuring out how to get the best photos, trying to decide what to bake for my birthday (which will be my first post!), and feeling like it’s patently unfair that I have to chose only one thing because as soon as I start looking, I want to make ALL the things. And I am LOVING working on it with my amazing friend Becky. This is the most fun thing. We’re launching in early February during Birthday Week (our birthdays are two days apart, how fun is that?) so you’ll get to see what Bec made for her birthday and what I made for mine (we are The Bakers in our respective houses, and so the birthday baking falls to us each year). Once our site up up and running, you’ll be the first to know. Soon, my friends!

Mwah!

<3,
jen

By jen | February 1, 2018 | Blog |

Creativity fuels creativity

I’ve been thinking a lot about creativity lately. I’m taking part in this amazing online summit in a couple of weeks, and in talking with Anna Acuña, the incredible force behind it, I’m ALL fired up. About creativity. About what makes me crave it. About how I can feed it. About how everyone is creative is some way, and can nuture it.

At my soul, I am a creator. Always have been. It’s who I am. But there are certainly times when I feel less inspired to make, and then other times when I am a creative machine (like right now, holy crap).

What changes?

It seems to me that the down times come when you need a break. You need to rest, let your mind go quiet to make space, to recharge. To find inspiration for whatever’s next, whatever your soul needs. That’s okay. In fact, it’s more than okay. It’s good. It’s necessary. Every creative person needs it.

And once you find that inspiration and your creativity gets cranking again…it spills out into all aspects of your life. When I get into a good groove of writing, when my mind is spinning stories, solving plot problems, discovering where the story is taking me, I’m also inspired to try some new recipe or figure out how to make that bag I’ve been eyeing online or discovering a new pattern I want to knit or imagining a set of colors I want to combine in a sweater…or….or…or…

It feels endless (in the BEST possible way). One spike creates another. Creativity fuels creativity. The more I imagine/make/do/create, the more I want to keep creating. The more possibilities I see. The more solutions I come up with. The more I want to do.

It’s an incredible circle of inspiration.

This is all just to say (to borrow Nike’s phrase)…just do it. Start. As you feed your own creativity (in whatever form it takes), it will start to feed itself. And it will fill you up, leading you to places you never imagined yourself to be.

Go there. You’ll love it.

Warmly,
jen

By jen | January 29, 2018 | Blog |

New Year, Same Me

Happy New Year, my friends!

After surviving the madness that is the holidays, I’m trying to get my juggling act under control. Again. Or at least keep all the balls in the air, even if they may veer off course here and there.

Problem is, I keep adding more balls.

Is it just me or do you want to do ALL the things, too? I have knitting projects I’m dying to cast on, sewing I want to try my hand at, painting ideas (I’m not a painter…but that’s never stopped me before), Bliss’s book which is my #1 writing project, coloring books I want to create non-sweary versions of, and a baking blog I am FINALLY starting with my fabulous friend Becky (who has the BEST diy home design/improvement blog on the internet, I kid you not) after talking about doing this for years. You know, amidst the homeschooling, teen writing classes I’m teaching, reading/playing with my kids, spending good time with my husband, and general busy-ness of life.

New year, same me. ;-)

Honestly, though, I *think* I’ve got this. And that feels good. I am a work in progress, however, and I always will be.

I did want to tell you that in September I announced via social media that since my brother died during the month of September, and I therefore consider it F*ck Cancer month, I would be donating 100% of the profits from sales of the F*ck Cancer coloring book. With your help, I was able to donate $700 to Fighting Ependymoma, a charity that funds research to finding a cure for a rare children’s spine/brain cancer. This is the cancer that killed my brother, and it seemed fitting to make my first donation there and in his honor. Thank you for that. More donations will be made to other cancer research charities or non-profits this year.

Hope your year is starting out filled with wonderful plans for all you want to do. <3

xo,
jen

By jen | January 8, 2018 | Blog |

On not finding Bliss

Total Bliss is—was—done. Written. Complete. Happily Ever After all wrapped up…but—and this is a BIG but—it’s not up to my high standards. After several revisions, it’s still not quite working for me. Not good enough. Not my best work, and you guys know I simply cannot put out anything less than my best. And so, I am going to start over. From scratch. Write the whole thing again.

That sounds crazy, right? And I honestly never thought I’d do this. Rewrite an entire book. I know other authors who have done it, and sincerely thought it was a slightly insane thing to do. Why start over? Why not just revise what you have? Work with what you’ve got? I mean, we’re talking about a LOT of words here.

Well, I understand now because what I’ve got doesn’t feel workable. This book needs an overhaul, and starting out fresh feels right. The story won’t change, but the telling of it will.

I’ve got to find my Bliss.

So, when will you see this book? I don’t know. I wish I did! Next year (please, it HAS to be). I’m taking a break through the holidays (if I can stand to not work on it…we’ll see), and will face that first blank page in January. And when Bliss is just the way I want it, you’ll be the first to know.

In the meantime, happy reading, my friends.

xo,
jen

…

By jen | October 30, 2017 | Blog |

Five Things

Coming soon!

1. Total Bliss update: First edits are done, and I spent the weekend re-reading the first two books in the series, Happily Ever After and Yours Truly, to make sure I had my facts straight, my characters consistent, and that I wasn’t telling the same story over and over again. Now on to the second edit, a few minor fixes, and further tightening of the writing. *happy sigh* I loooove the editing process because every time I go through it, the book gets better and better, and that’s a really great feeling after the suffering the depressive crappy first draft when I’m absolutely positive I’ve lost all ability to write well.

And, you guys, I am loving Bliss so much. I’m SO excited to share it with you. It’s been a long time coming, and while I don’t have a release date yet, I am working my butt off to polish it up to a pretty shine and get it in your hands as soon as possible. Soon! You’ll be the first to know when it will be released.

Of course, there are a few other things taking up some of my time and attention, like…

2. I’m getting ready to teach a writing class for teens this coming school year and I’m a little ridiculously excited about it. My stack of beloved writing books is getting a re-read as I immerse myself in craft again. And, man, does that feel good. Not only am I going to (hopefully) be helping teens find their voice and self-confidence as writers, but as I create the class from scratch and go through the process of teaching, it will only improve my own writing skills as well. Because you get a deeper understanding of something when you teach it, and I have no doubt that as the class inspires the teen writers, it will inspire me, too. <3

3. I’m also going to be teaching a writing class for younger kids. Both of these classes are for local homeschoolers, and I’m stupid excited to get the chance to make writing a pleasurable experience for kids. Especially since it never was for me at that age.

And I think that’s what I’m most excited about, especially with the teens—turning the writing experience into something they enjoy. I know I’ll have some kids who love to write and some who hate it and think they can’t write. I identify deeply with that latter group. If, at the very least, I can help those teens see that they can write well, demystify the process for them so that they come to feel confident in their writing skills, then they will be well equipped for college and beyond.

I definitely have my work cut out for me, but it’s such good work. I’m equal parts excitedly-overwhelmed and overwhelmingly-excited.

4. My library’s fall book sale is in early September, and I’m helping to organize it again. It actually runs the same week my writing classes begin, so early September is going to be a blur. While I love being a part of the library book sale and thoroughly enjoy every aspect of it, it’s an exhausting week and a half of set up and sale. I’m a wee bit already looking forward to it being over.

5. And in the midst of all this there will be salsa making! And pickle making, too, if I haven’t missed all the pickling cucumbers this season. Need to make a run to my local family farm stand. I’ve had my head so deeply buried in Bliss, that I haven’t been up there yet this summer. *adds to my To Do list*

Well, back to work on Bliss for me. Hope you all are enjoying your summer!

<3,
jen

By jen | August 8, 2017 | Blog |

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