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Jenn Keohane has been writing fiction, primarily micros, since 2022. While she hasn’t been published yet, she’s been a finalist in several writing contests, including NYC Midnight. Recently, she’s also begun experimenting with creative nonfiction. Beyond the written word, she enjoys hiking with her naughty rescue dog and baking treats no one suspects are vegan. Now embracing the joys of empty nester days, Jenn and her husband relish their newfound freedom in sunny Northern California. Their two young adult children are off forging their own paths. |
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Interview with Jenn Keohane about her story
"I took vitamins, tracked my temperature, and kept my legs in the air"
Honorable Mention for The Scribes Prize
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What inspired this piece?
Although it’s been a while and isn’t something I dwell on these days, my husband and I faced challenges in building our family together. There were a couple of desperate years during that time. In this piece, I explore the dark feelings when I just wanted to stay home and avoid everyone, especially my pregnant friends.
What draws you to the micro-fiction format?
I love cramming as much story as possible into just a few words. Each word must be significant to the story, as there is no room for waste and excess. Playing around with word choice and line edits is my favorite part of writing, so I’m especially drawn to 100 and 250-word stories.
If you could continue writing your story after these 100 words, what would happen next?
There is a happy ending for the struggling couple, my husband and me. After the loss of our much-wanted pregnancy, we went on to adopt an amazing child from Kazakhstan, and he is now a happy, healthy 20-year-old man. He has brought us joy (at least on most days) since he joined our family. From our loss, a new family blossomed. We also have a lovely biological daughter, who is two years older than our son.
What's next on the horizon for you?
I hope to be published one day, but for now, my focus is on writing competitions. I love the thrill of receiving two or three random prompts and crafting a story out of them. I consider myself very versatile in what I can write, so I don’t fear any genre assignment. That means writing anything from horror to political satire, historical fiction, and more!
Although it’s been a while and isn’t something I dwell on these days, my husband and I faced challenges in building our family together. There were a couple of desperate years during that time. In this piece, I explore the dark feelings when I just wanted to stay home and avoid everyone, especially my pregnant friends.
What draws you to the micro-fiction format?
I love cramming as much story as possible into just a few words. Each word must be significant to the story, as there is no room for waste and excess. Playing around with word choice and line edits is my favorite part of writing, so I’m especially drawn to 100 and 250-word stories.
If you could continue writing your story after these 100 words, what would happen next?
There is a happy ending for the struggling couple, my husband and me. After the loss of our much-wanted pregnancy, we went on to adopt an amazing child from Kazakhstan, and he is now a happy, healthy 20-year-old man. He has brought us joy (at least on most days) since he joined our family. From our loss, a new family blossomed. We also have a lovely biological daughter, who is two years older than our son.
What's next on the horizon for you?
I hope to be published one day, but for now, my focus is on writing competitions. I love the thrill of receiving two or three random prompts and crafting a story out of them. I consider myself very versatile in what I can write, so I don’t fear any genre assignment. That means writing anything from horror to political satire, historical fiction, and more!