Jennifer's Home Page

Jennifer Semple Siegel, Writer


Welcome to Jennifer's Home Page!


This page links to all my significant sites (see left panel).

About Jennifer

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Are You EVER Going to be Thin? (and other stories)

Five Star Review


Available on Amazon

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Fasting would surely come into fashion again at some future date, yet that was no comfort for those living in the present. What, then, was the hunger artist to do?

--Franz Kafka, "A Hunger Artist"


In all her life she had never been afflicted by ill temper and she looked upon it now as a demon which, along with hunger, was taking possession of her soul.

--Andre Dubus, "The Fat Girl"

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"Mea Culpa," Enigma



fluffyshanyn
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Memoir--I, Driven: memoir of a teen's involuntary commitment

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Prologue: Caged

[My ex-husband] may feel uncomfortable with my treatment of him, but this memoir isn’t about our life together but our life apart at a time when we wanted to be together.

--The Politics of Memoir

(February 19, 1969)

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I was driven to Cherokee.

A hazy memory of riding caged in the back of a police car.


Two shadows in the front seat, the county sheriff and a female escort, jabbering. I, cargo, to be delivered from the Woodbury County courthouse to the Cherokee Mental Institution.

Outside, the Iowa landscape bleak:


Cloudy and cold, condensation and frost riming the windows, piles of dirty snow dotting the countryside.

Inside, hot and steamy.


Still, I shivered, my teeth chattering. Please turn up the heat!

But cargo has no voice.

For all the importance of this drive–then and now–I remember little, except for one question:

Am I really crazy?

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From I, Driven: memoir of a teens involuntary commitment ("Prologue")

© 2008, by Jennifer Semple Siegel

Excerpt may not be used or copied without author’s permission.

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Jefferson Airplane: "White Rabbit" and "Somebody to Love"

Jefferson Airplane performing live both "White Rabbit" and "Somebody to Love" on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. More
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Additional excerpts, out takes, and new essays

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For New and Improved Page

(Updated Text and Video Clips),

Go to

NewMemoir.com

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Introducing NewMemoirs.com: An Offer to You

Have you written and/or published a memoir?

If so, please read on.

NewMemoirs.com is all about new memoirs, both published and unpublished.

This is not a review site. In other words, I will not review your memoir, but I am offering you a highly targeted web space where you can blurb and brag about your new memoir.

For free.

Once your blurb appears on this site, it will remain here, unless you request that it be removed.

No obligation, ever. In fact, I have nothing to sell.

So why am I doing this?

1. I am a writer who has written a memoir that I'm trying to shop around, so in 2007 I registered the domain NewMemoirs.com. My hope: to use the site to convince agents and editors to represent my memoir I, Driven: a teen's memoir of involuntary commitment. I was going to keep this site all to myself, but then I started thinking: why not offer web space to other writers who also have their memoirs to shop around and sell?



2. To be honest, this is not an entirely a selfless offer. The internet is all about numbers; the more relevant pages a site has, the higher it ranks in the search engines, which means higher traffic to the site. So you see, it's a win-win situation for everyone who has a spot on this site. We will all get better exposure, which is all we really want for our books. In exchange for a highly targeted web space, you are giving me free content for my website. On the internet, content is king, and targeted free content is the best kind yet.



3. You will see tasteful ads on this page, but never pop-up, pop-under, slide-across, or "Welcome to My Page" ads. I don't like those annoyances either and have no intention of filling my sites with such irritating nonsense. If you ever see those kinds of ads on my pages, let me know, and I'll make sure that they are removed. Furthermore, web surfers who land on this site are never under any obligation to click on any of the ads.

So are you interested? If so, I'll need some text, which must be pasted in your email to me, and a photograph from you (thus, no email attachments except for the photograph).

For already-published memoirs:

• Title of your memoir with full publication data: date, publisher, number of pages, ISBN number, price, and an ordering information link. This info can be obtained from Amazon and/or your publisher. If your memoir is self-published and printed, you may have your ordering information placed directly on your web space.



• A blurb, 100-250 words, about your memoir.



• Your full name and bio, about 100 words, or a link to your longer online bio.



• If applicable, one book review of your memoir.



• One photo of your book cover (attached as a JPEG file). Be sure to give credit to the photographer and cover designer, even if it's a friend, relative, or just you..



• A short excerpt from the memoir, no more than 500 words.



• A link to your web page. Not required, but a reciprocal link to www.NewMemoirs.com on your web page would be greatly appreciated.



• Email your text and photograph to me.

For unpublished memoirs:

• An open letter to agents and publishers (see sample--my own open letter), with a compelling opening, title of your memoir, number of manuscript pages, and other pertinent information.



• Your full name and bio, about 100 words, or a link to your longer online bio.



• If applicable, one pre-publication book review of your manuscript.



• One photo that captures the spirit of your memoir (attached as a JPEG file). Just be sure that you own the rights to the photograph or have permission to use it. Be sure to give credit to the photographer, even if it's a friend, relative, or just you.



• A short excerpt from the manuscript, no more than 500 words.



• A link to your web page. Not required, but a reciprocal link to www.NewMemoirs.com on your web page would be greatly appreciated.



• Email your text and photograph to me.

Other than running a quick spell check, I will not be editing your work, so please make sure that your text is exactly the way you want it; due to time constraints, I will not be able to go back and do edits on your page.

Please read the disclaimer on NewMemoirs.com.

Poetry, Inc: ISO of 100 Snarkers!

We're serious: Let 'er R.I.P.

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Poetry, Inc, developed with nary a plan in mind and launched on June 10, 2008, intends to take poetry snark to yet another level--

A lower level?

Who can say? We're too new to know...

Consider us the funny aunt or uncle to the more serious Poets.net...

Do you like humor, satire, parody, and just plain snark?

Do you believe that Poetry, Inc (a.k.a. the poetry establishment) has itself become a parody and is worthy of humorous jabs at its antics and perps?

Are you hankering to write comedy for Comedy Central or Conan O'Brien?

If so, apply to join Team Poetry, Inc. In the subject line, type "I Want To Join Team Poetry, Inc!"

We are in search of 100 snarkers (Blogger's absolute limit) to join our snark project.

We can't promise that your participation will lead to bigger and better things--in fact you may even end up on the Poetry Blacklist!

To apply for this double-edged honor, paste in your email a sample of your writing:

--Humorous/snarky poetry

--Humorous/snarky prose

Snark on!

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