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, September 25, 2024

Awake

So I am awake. It's 2:30 am. The tapping on the keys of my phone brings me comfort. My phone's blue light is like a candle guiding m...

Monday, September 23, 2024

Duckie

This one is just for you my blog friends and dedicated to my shih tzu Chewbacca. Duckie You didn't quack You barked And you followed I ...

Sunday, September 22, 2024

A shih tzu named Chewbacca

I had to let Chewbacca go this morning. He's over the rainbow bridge, and here's something I wrote for him in my MFA class. Sleep m...

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

504 am

I often title my blogs after what time it is when I start writing. Writing has become such an ingrained part of my life. It's like breat...

Thursday, September 12, 2024

330 again and again

So I'm up. It's 330 am. Again. Chewbacca had been doing okay until the fires which have really exacerbated his breathing issues So ...

Thursday, September 5, 2024

The muse

Today, I have an event with a Latina writer named Julia Amante. We are talking about writing stories with a cultural Latina perspective. And...

Wednesday, August 28, 2024

Crying

Chewbacca cried all night. At some point, I yelled "go to bed" in a frustrated loud voice from the futon. This is all bringing ba...

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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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