Jeannine is a writer, poet, memoirist, stoic, certified navel gazer, die-hard introvert, fitness enthusiast, runner, mom, step-mom, wife, bean counter.

She recently finished her second manuscript, Tulip, a memoir about navigating life with a mentally ill mother. She is currently querying literary agents.

My Memoir – Only Girl:

In February of 1969, I was born into a family of five boys, tightly sandwiched between the thick slices of my mom’s mental illness and my dad’s alcoholism. I quietly, deftly navigated my way through the choppy, murky waters of my childhood, while forming a complex relationship with kindly loving “Regular Mom”, and wildly insane “Manic Mom”. Sometimes I played the role of obedient daughter to my mother, and other times, I was the patient, caregiving parent. My mom’s illness derailed my, life time and again until seasons and age smoothed our frayed ties into a beautifully flawed relationship. It is a story thickly woven from our resilience, bravery, strength, and perseverance.

The tale bravely, yet subtly, touches on the painful topics of sexual abuse, eating disorders, domestic violence, bullying, addiction, society’s broken mental health system, and the impact these traumas have on an individual’s emotional development. I believe the book will open up a dialogue about mental illness and the burden it places upon families. More deeply, the story connects to those places inside all of us where we quietly nourish a private well of strength, which guides us to experience and understand the beauty of life despite unfortunate circumstances.