Life of JEM: My Life In The Inland Empire

A BLOG ABOUT THE ZANY CHILDHOOD AND ADULT ADVENTURES OF A GIRL FROM THE INLAND EMPIRE WHO MOVED OUT OF THE INLAND EMPIRE ONLY TO END UP BACK IN THE INLAND EMPIRE.

Wednesday, November 26, 2025

Day 71 and KA from my new substack on sobriety

Today’s daily reflection reminds us there are no coincidences. It reads, “God is no stranger to anonymity and often appears in human affair...

Monday, November 24, 2025

A poem for Pippin at 453 am

Scowling, I walk downstairs Pippin is barking again, and again His bark as sharp as a Ginzu knife It pierces the ears, makes eardrums Metap...

Saturday, November 22, 2025

Eating glass

I am sitting with my shih tzus, Merry, Pippin and Princess Leia. The Christmas trees are decorated, yes we have two, one pink and one green....

Thursday, November 13, 2025

Dancing with myself

Sometimes, I feel as if I am writing into a void. I'm working on a novel and it feels weird, lonely, and sad at times. My protagonist is...

Tuesday, November 11, 2025

Book baby twin

Recently, I've been thinking of how hard I am on myself. I always cross examine myself. I suppose it's the drawback of being a defen...

Wednesday, November 5, 2025

Day 50

This post just ran on my new substack about my recovery journey. Please subscribe at: https://substack.com/home/post/p-177961330?fbclid=IwZ...

Tuesday, October 28, 2025

Halloween time

It's Halloween time! We started decorating yesterday. It was so lovely and fun. I also went to a party Saturday. I dressed as a Diet Cok...

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About Me

Juanita E. Mantz (JEM): JEM's life story is the stuff that memoirs are made of. JEM went from punk rock high school dropout to corporate lawyer to rock star deputy public defender and nonfiction writer. JEM's stories, blog and video podcast document her journey so take a look! Her YA memoir, "Tales of an Inland Empire Girl", is available via Los Nietos Press (and through all national retailers). Her book tells the poignant story of her chaotic YA life growing up in the IE. Her chapbook, "Portrait of a Deputy Public Defender, or how I became a punk rock lawyer", was also released in Aug 2021 by Bamboo Darts Press. JEM is married to her wonderful husband Adrian who is a dentist. They have two Shih Tzus, Frodo and Chewbaca (Chewie to his friends). Her work has been published in Aljazeera, The Acentos Review, The Dirty Spoon Radio Hour, Entropy, As/Us, Inlandia, & Mutha magazine, among others. Go to her author website for more info at https://juanitaemantz.com. JEM is in the creative writing MFA low residency program at UNO. She has presented at AWP, Beyond Baroque and the UCR Punk Conference.

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