tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70329393766591778902024-03-27T16:54:50.242-07:00Jennifer Lee Rossman - Speculative Fiction Author and EditorJennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.comBlogger383125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-73167110910840149632024-03-14T08:42:00.000-07:002024-03-14T08:42:43.664-07:00The Sound Of Silence<p><a href="https://www.bourbonpenn.com/issue/32/the-sound-of-silence-by-jennifer-lee-rossman" target="_blank"> I am very proud to say my autistic science fiction horror story "The Sound Of Silence" is now available to read for free online at Bourbon Penn!</a></p><p>Based on the Simon and Garfunkel song of the same name, my story takes place in a world where everyone has telepathic abilities and does not speak verbally. Well, everyone except one girl…</p><p>It is very much a metaphor for being nonverbal, and being autistic in general.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-60118946025354694412024-03-08T06:33:00.000-08:002024-03-08T06:33:47.550-08:00Growing Up Creepy<p>My story "Growing Up Creepy" is one of 99 short stories now available in <a href="https://books2read.com/99FleetingFantasies" target="_blank">99 Fleeting Fantasies</a></p><p>The story is said to be an excerpt from "Unhappy, Unmotivated, And Only Vaguely Unsettling: Former Black Eyed Children Discuss The Effects Of Growing Up Creepy," an anonymously published thesis, because in an anthology of very very short stories, that was a bit long to be the entire title lol.</p><p><br /></p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-32615012413913368502024-03-01T11:27:00.000-08:002024-03-04T07:39:06.799-08:00Art-ificial Intelligence<p> My story Art-ificial Intelligence is now available in the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/919890762X" target="_blank">AI, Robot anthology!</a></p><p>It is set in a 90s aesthetic world where human creativity is delegated to machines, and vaguely shares a plot with the movie Free Willy. And by vaguely, I mean I haven't seen that movie in over 20 years and definitely did not remember everything correctly.</p><p>As an author, taking the creativity out of creating is obviously a disturbing concept for me. Machines can't truly create, not new things, they can only make a variations on what we have already taught them to make. But what if we forgot that, or didn't care to begin with? What kind of society would that lead to?</p><p>I also took inspiration from <a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/lisa-frank-factory" target="_blank">the abandoned Lisa Frank factory</a> </p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-76615432333294336622024-02-19T06:15:00.000-08:002024-02-19T06:15:27.053-08:00Alone<p> My newest horror story, Alone, is now available to read online from <a href="https://horrortree.com/trembling-with-fear-2-18-24/" target="_blank">Trembling With Fear!</a></p><p>Set on a Star Trek style starship, Alone is a twisty psychological horror about a man hunting a mysterious and murderous being. He's been chasing it as long as he can remember, and he's finally about to catch up to it…</p><p>My story was inspired by the Blues Traveler song "Runaround" and the movie Harry and the Hendersons.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-18280831930140239142024-02-13T17:10:00.000-08:002024-02-13T17:10:56.073-08:00The Spirit Of The Narcissus<p> My story, The Spirit Of The Narcissus, is now available in the <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/6243b0d7a09ce61ffbe6d260/t/65c8fed40ffe822f35648ed9/1707671253941/QAF+Issue+3.pdf" target="_blank">Queer AF issue of Tree And Stone</a>!</p><p>It's about impossible aquatic folklore on a spaceship, body image and internalized ableism, and queer people in love.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-39517847791852639672024-02-03T11:08:00.000-08:002024-02-03T11:08:04.423-08:00Knead<p> My story Knead is now available for free online from <a href="https://roosterrepublicpress.com/knead-by-jennifer-lee-rossman/" target="_blank">2000 Word Terrors!</a></p><p>A gourmet chef working at a children's pizza parlor is haunted by his past…</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-7920883285362935252024-01-30T08:30:00.000-08:002024-01-30T08:30:16.573-08:00Blue Incarnations<p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CLL1RRVK?ref_=pe_93986420_774987470" target="_blank"> I am very proud to announce my novel Blue Incarnations is finally available in paperback and digital!</a></p><p>It is a futuristic queer thriller set in a world where everybody remembers their past lives, and a corrupt government has instituted a system where people can be punished for crimes committed in a prior incarnation.</p><p>The main character, Diana Callahan, is a teenager with no memories of her past lives. When she suddenly start remembering, however, she learns maybe there was a good reason she wanted to forget… </p><p>I have been working on this book for… I don't know, 7+ years on and off? It was inspired by the line "You've got a brand new soul" in Billy Joel's Only The Good Die Young, and whenever I got stuck on the plot I would pick some other lyrics from Billy Joel songs and work the ideas into the story somehow.</p><p>I tried to go to the traditional publishing route at one point but the story wasn't ready and I know that now. It went through a few more edits and then I decided I was going to publish it myself.</p><p>I am really proud of it and I think it's good and… Yeah. I hope people give it a chance.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-66850762202463728852024-01-04T09:28:00.000-08:002024-01-04T09:28:13.215-08:00Savior Of The Crying Hemlocks<p> Very proud to say my story "Savior Of The Crying Hemlocks" is now available in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CRF1M5HP" target="_blank">Sunshine Superhighway: Solar Sailings</a>!</p><p>Originally called "SQUONK If You Hate Climate Change," my story is about a woman in a futuristic world trying to save the last ancient hemlocks from poachers.</p><p>Her child helps, and they get additional support from the mysterious squonk, a legendary creature from Pennsylvania folklore who is so ugly and sad, he cries constantly. Legend says his tears can dissolve anything, even his own body, and some interpretations of these legends suggest he might be an ecological metaphor created by early lumberjacks who realized they were killing the forest as European settlers made the land more industrial.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-90088102147425253422023-12-01T16:49:00.000-08:002023-12-01T16:49:22.309-08:00Blue Incarnations cover reveal and pre-order<p> On January 29, 2024, I will be self publishing my queer reincarnation thriller Blue Incarnations!</p><p>I've been working on this book for the better part of 10 years on and off. Writing and rewriting and eventually figuring out what story I wanted to tell.</p><p>I tried to go to traditional publishing route with it a couple years and several rewrites ago, but it wasn't ready. I thought about trying again, but querying novels isn't something I enjoy and I wanted to get more experience with the ins and outs of actually designing and publishing a book rather than just writing one.</p><p>Anyway. I'm really proud of this book and I can't wait for people to read it. <a href="https://a.co/d/2Y3j1Op" target="_blank">You can pre-order the e-book now, and the paperback version will be available on January 29.</a></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxwH0FQSXpUscgEFTeo13M_O-G3sVfQYoSHFzBBTxu5XcbGbb_KjVsQ2apALoumCgAdaX8N3Ck6d_Naj6qqX4lDdUsBM22BqicaoobevGOuCbR72GliSYb5N2hW2idStuzV2lXAVzgbnLZFEFixSlOaNwUUqI94c6enMcl7JHgEUiVzFHEuD6yGm5qZx0/s2000/IMG_0676.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxwH0FQSXpUscgEFTeo13M_O-G3sVfQYoSHFzBBTxu5XcbGbb_KjVsQ2apALoumCgAdaX8N3Ck6d_Naj6qqX4lDdUsBM22BqicaoobevGOuCbR72GliSYb5N2hW2idStuzV2lXAVzgbnLZFEFixSlOaNwUUqI94c6enMcl7JHgEUiVzFHEuD6yGm5qZx0/s320/IMG_0676.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-90125978628336259072023-11-16T07:31:00.000-08:002023-11-16T07:31:24.108-08:00Mighty: An Anthology Of Disabled Superheroes<p> I want to do a proper post talking about this more in depth and highlighting all of our amazing authors, but for now I just want to get the links out there and officially announce:</p><p>Mighty: An Anthology Of Disabled Superheroes is now available everywhere you buy books!</p><p>This anthology was edited by myself and Emily Gillespie, and we are so proud of our authors and we really hope you will check it out</p><p><a href="https://linktr.ee/renaissancepublicist">https://linktr.ee/renaissancepublicist</a></p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-77407823668024327662023-10-26T11:29:00.002-07:002023-10-26T11:29:18.952-07:00Untamed<p> What do you get when you combine Shakespeare and a terrible B movie? The taming of the killer shrews, of course!</p><p>Untamed, available in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Greater-Than-Nature-Eirik-Gumeny-ebook/dp/B0CKFC9G34" target="_blank">Greater Than His Nature</a>, is my take on a retelling of Taming Of The Shrew, set on an island where scientists have been experimenting on a young woman who turns into a killer shrew when she can't control her emotions.</p><p>It's also an allegory for autistic people who are forced to go through harmful "treatment" like advanced behavioral analysis because neurotypical people think we need to be fixed.</p><p>In that regard, and because it's based on Taming Of The Shrew, please be aware there is gaslighting and mentally abusive and manipulative situations in my story. They are not glorified or romanticized in any way, at least that was not my intention.</p><p>There's also quite a bit of violence. If it were a visual medium, like a movie, it would be very gory. My main character turns into a shrew who attacks and eats people. Of course there's going to be a lot of blood involved in that. However, I believe I handled it tastefully (no pun intended) and did not describe the violence or blood shed in much detail at all.</p><p>Also, fun fact: I was struggling with the character of Peter for a while. I knew what he needed to do for the plot, but I couldn't figure out his personality. He was a very boring character to write.</p><p>So I decided to write him as if I was writing a character for Karl Urban to play in a movie. Sort of a very toned down version of Billy Butcher from The Boys, complete with Hawaiian shirts (which I even managed to use as symbolism, which made me very pleased).</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-52200143857857131842023-09-20T09:49:00.004-07:002023-09-20T09:49:26.075-07:00Blood And Iron<p> I am so pleased to finally be able to announce my short story "Blood And Iron" is available in <a href="https://www.atthisarts.com/product/rosalinds-siblings/" target="_blank">Rosalind's Siblings</a>, a celebration of scientists of marginalized genders. This anthology was scheduled for several years ago but the plan fell through and it finally found a new home with Atthis Arts!</p><p>My story is about an autistic forensic pathologist who deals with magical creatures. They've been showing up in our world for some reason, but never survive long. Her latest case—a fairy who might have been murdered—could be the key to solving the entire interdimensional mystery.</p><p>This character is a lot like me, and probably the most explicitly autistic character I have ever written. It isn't just a diagnosis she has or something she deals with, it is an integral part of who she is and how she interacts with the world.</p><p>My original description for her was "Temperance Brennan from Bones if she was a Disney princess."</p><p>The death of magical creatures is central to the story, but there is no death on the page and any mentions of bodies and autopsy of them is dealt with in a non-graphic way.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-50833535405716012752023-09-19T09:59:00.000-07:002023-09-19T09:59:25.989-07:00Wardrobe Of The Worlds<p>In fashion, one day you're in, and the next day you’re out of this world…</p><p>My story "Wardrobe Of The Worlds" is now available in <a href="https://www.forestavenuepress.com/bookshop/p/j82ly8pt9lia2x1dbc7tbp26l3gp4y" target="_blank">Soul Jar</a>, an anthology of disabled authors.</p><p>Imagine intergalactic Project Runway with an autistic model and a Bruce Willis inspired Army general designer, and you've got the idea. Oh, and if they don't make the best dress possible, well… the Earth might be destroyed.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-17105769830846882942023-08-27T12:58:00.007-07:002023-08-27T12:58:51.014-07:00Part Of Her World<p> This story didn't get announced when it first came out, so I am announcing it now!"Part Of Her World" is available to read for free online at <a href="https://www.abilitymaine.org/bs2023winter-1/%22part-of-her-world%22" target="_blank">Breath And Shadow!</a></p><p>This story, loosely based on The Little Mermaid, deals with a disabled woman who lives in a gravity free environment that helps her move more easily, trying to hide the fact that she is disabled while helping a pretty astronaut.</p><p>There is a lot of internalized ableism to this character. She doesn't mind being disabled, but she has it in her head that no one will treat her with respect, or want to date her, if they know she can't walk.</p><p>That's something a lot of us have to deal with. When I first started writing and submitting stories, I never mentioned my disability. I didn't want it to change the way people thought of me.</p><p>I always mention it now, because it's important to be honest about yourself and to have good disability representation in the media. But there is still always that little doubt, is this going to change anything?</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-56403321417374256332023-08-19T09:47:00.011-07:002023-08-19T09:47:58.863-07:00Welcome Mat, Five Stars<p> I am very proud to announce that my new story "Welcome Mat, Five Stars" is now available in the anthology <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Monsters-Next-Door-R-Carter/dp/B0CFWXW72G/ref=mp_s_a_1_19?crid=XE9ZSM7U4NK7&keywords=The+monsters+next+door&qid=1692370013&s=books&sprefix=the+monsters+next+door%2Caps%2C407&sr=1-19" target="_blank">The Monsters Next Door</a>!</p><p>It's a humorous but tragic story of a couple who unknowingly move into a community of vampires.</p><p>The story is told through online product reviews left by the main character, Lucy Morris (named after my two favorite Dracula characters who deserved better).</p><p>I think that format gave me a unique opportunity to build suspense because I have so much control over what information the readers have. There's no dialogue, there's no descriptions of the neighborhood, the story is pieced together just with the details Lucy inadvertently gives in her reviews.</p><p>I had a lot of fun writing it, because I didn't know where it was going at first. I only knew there was a welcome mat at the beginning and a mirror at the end, and I had to work out how to get from one to the other, and then go back and fill in the foreshadowing to make it make sense.</p><p>I hope you enjoy it.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-20612772368226200912023-08-02T12:16:00.000-07:002023-08-02T12:16:03.711-07:00And Let It Go<p> My story "And Let It Go" is now available in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CD9BLCJR/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1690986506&sr=1-2" target="_blank">Yay! They're Here!</a></p><p>It's the story of the woman who accidentally started the end of the world when aliens landed on her birthday.</p><p>The title is a reference to 99 Red Balloons, which also inspired most of the plot (and the name of the alien species).</p><p>I also took inspiration from The Twilight Zone episode "To Serve Man." I grew up watching marathons of that show every major holiday on the Sci-Fi Channel, and that was always one of my favorite episodes.</p><p>For maximum enjoyment, I recommend imagining the main character as Kat Dennings's MCU character Darcy Lewis. 100% I wrote it with her in mind. Actually, writing it as if she was going to play my character is what took this story from just a vague idea to a finished piece.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-12808951221686386932023-07-31T10:21:00.001-07:002023-07-31T10:21:17.558-07:00Transfer, Emphasis On Trans<div>I am very proud to say my story "Transfer, Emphasis On Trans" is now available in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CCZWJHMS?ref_=cm_sw_r_mwn_dp_2JGC5JAD5X8R83DP9CB9" target="_blank">Mirrors Reflecting Shadows</a>, proceeds benefiting The Trevor Project.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's set in a futuristic world where Freaky Friday style body swaps are commonly offered services.</div><div><br /></div><div>When a trans man swaps bodies so he can properly experience society as a man before transitioning, he expects it to last 24 hours. Little does Alexander know, the person he swapped with was in trouble and got himself—and Alexander's original body—killed.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now he's stuck in the perfect body—and in the middle of an investigation.</div><div><br /></div>When I wrote this story, I didn’t realize I was trans. I just thought everyone had a little bit of gender dysphoria from time to time.<div><br /></div><div>That was in 2017.</div><div><br /></div><div>Since then, this story has collected almost 20 rejections and almost as many different titles and editing passes. And every time I edited it, it felt a little more familiar, a little more personal.</div><div><br /></div><div>And that's because I'm non-binary.</div><div><br /></div><div>While this story overall is one of hope and gender affirmation, please be aware the main character's family is not affirming of his gender or name with the exception of his sister.</div>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-43564277942476328852023-07-06T11:53:00.000-07:002023-07-06T11:53:02.418-07:00The Horsepower Whisperer<p> I am very proud to announce I have another story published in the amazing Brave New Girls series of anthologies. This one is "The Horsepower Whisper," available in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Brave-New-Girls-Engineer-Explore/dp/B0C7JCYLJJ/" target="_blank">Brave New Girls: Tales Of Girls Who Engineer And Explore!</a></p><p>My story is a steampunk tale about a family struggling to keep their farm profitable while recovering from the death of the mother.</p><p>The main character, Katie, is trying to follow in her mother's dancing footsteps, but instead of practicing her routine, she's trying to help her father and younger sister with the farm. She decides what they really need is a horse, so she buys a broken down mechanical one and tries to fix him up in secret.</p><p>There's one scene in this story that I struggled with writing, because in my mind, it needed to be a music montage set to the Hall and Oates song "You Make My Dreams Come True" and I just couldn't figure out how to write that for the longest time.</p><p>I hope you enjoy my story, although please be aware it does deal with grief of losing a mother to cancer.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-86303553694415417342023-05-15T12:54:00.002-07:002023-05-15T12:54:14.309-07:00The Cracking Of The Cosmic EggJane went to space… and she came back very different…<div><br /></div><div>"The Cracking Of The Cosmic Egg," <a href="https://www.illustratedworldsmagazine.com/store/p3/Illustrated_Worlds_Magazine_Volume_2_Print_Copy.html#/" target="_blank">available in Illustrated Worlds</a>, is a cosmic horror story with a metaphorical transgender twist.</div><div><br /></div><div>I won't say much so as not to spoil it, but I will say my inspiration was my favorite song "Drops of Jupiter," but I turned it into a horror story.</div><div><br /></div><div>Content warnings for body horror, cosmic horror, metaphorical gender dysphoria, the bloody aftermath of violence (violence not described in any real detail.)</div>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-82262046395794252502023-05-06T09:16:00.006-07:002023-05-06T09:16:58.900-07:00Six Poem Publications!<p> I am the featured poet in the <a href="https://www.hiraethsffh.com/product-page/illumen-spring-2023-edited-by-tyree-campbell" target="_blank">newest issue of Illumen</a>!</p><p>I have six poems published in the issue:</p><p>Footprints</p><p>Dinosaurs Would Be Trans Allies</p><p>Fine Print</p><p>Your Light Was On</p><p>Unboxing</p><p>An Open Letter To The Legislators Forcing Me To Become A Kaiju</p><p><br /></p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-54912491150179155572023-05-01T11:18:00.000-07:002023-05-01T11:18:08.228-07:00Body by Franz Kafka<p> My story "Body by Franz Kafka" is now available for free in the latest issue of <a href="http://www.mirrordancefantasy.com/2023/05/body-by-franz-kafka.html" target="_blank">Mirror Dance!</a></p><p>It's a body horror story about gender dysphoria and transphobia in society, told through a Twilight Zone lens.</p><p>Trans people aren't any more dangerous than anyone else, yet there is so much fear surrounding us, so many people trying to legislate us out of existence and stir up hysteria. They want people to believe we are going to turn your kids trans, or that it is something that happens overnight and needs to be fixed because it isn't really us.</p><p>So I wrote a story about pod people and gender and messed up butterflies.</p><p>When I was three or four, my dad found a monarch butterfly chrysalis on the garbage can outside our trailer and brought it in. The butterfly hatched when I was looking down at a coloring book, and I'm still a little bit upset about that 30 years later.</p><p>I named him Cooey, after a character on Eureka's Castle. Somewhere in my boxes of photo albums in the basement, I have pictures of him crawling on me and "playing" with my Littlest Pet Shop toys.</p><p>I still think about him surprisingly often, even though he only lived with us for maybe a day or two in the chrysalis and an hour or so as an adult butterfly. He was my first real introduction to how beautiful and weird nature can be.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-39875769046710347022023-04-28T09:20:00.003-07:002023-04-28T09:20:42.931-07:00Heartbeat<p> How far would you go to save the world?</p><p>Would you kill the universe?</p><p>In my story "Heartbeat," available now in <a href="https://wearethequietones.com/current-issue/" target="_blank">The Cosmic And The Void,</a> a brother and sister discover that the universe is a living thing, and the Earth exists inside its heart. And the next heartbeat is going to kill everyone.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-28468984417355232872023-03-26T08:21:00.000-07:002023-03-26T08:21:47.357-07:00People Like Us<p> I am proud to announce that my short story "People Like Us" is now available in <a href="https://www.wordsmakeart.com/products/we-deserve-to-exist-anthology-ebook-and-paperback" target="_blank">We Deserve To Exist!</a></p><p>Based on the Kelly Clarkson song of the same name, People Like Us is set in a world without color, where mysterious entities have been seeking out and eliminating anyone who doesn't conform to their idea of what humanity should be.</p><p>This includes queer people and magic users, and my main character—a non-binary magic user—is doing their best to help people while also staying under the radar.</p><p>They are a psychopomp, a concept common in ancient mythology. Someone who can travel to the land of the dead, who often accompanies freshly deceased souls to make sure they arrive in the underworld.</p><p>My character does this for trans people. You see, gender dysphoria in this world makes you very visible to the bad people. It makes you colorful.</p><p>So they help people die, just temporarily, although there is often, unfortunately, the temptation to stay that way. And then they help the souls come back, into a new body that fits better.</p><p>But what happens when they meet the brightest, most rainbow colored non-binary child… who doesn't want a new body?</p><p>Content warnings for transphobia, gender dysphoria, death and resurrection, dead bodies not described in any detail, temporary suicide (if that is a thing?), suicidal ideation, and persecution of marginalized people.</p><p>But even with all of that darkness as its foundation, this is one of my most helpful and beautiful stories in my opinion.</p><p>Also, there is a very good dog in it.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-53770141696951720812023-03-07T08:37:00.002-08:002023-03-07T08:37:17.441-08:00Muse<p> Hello! Somehow this story never got announced! 😱</p><p>My story Muse is now available in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Phantasmical-Contraptions-Errors-Jessica-Augustsson/dp/9198786229" target="_blank">Phantasmical Contraptions & More Errors</a>!</p><p>It's a story about addiction and creativity in a cyberpunk world where inspiration comes in pill form. It's also a story about love, trusting yourself, and how you might just have everything you need right in front of you and not even know it.</p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7032939376659177890.post-62980835975965929542023-03-04T09:42:00.001-08:002023-03-04T09:42:46.810-08:00The Flatwoods Monster and The Little Green Men<p> Hello! I am happy to announce my story "<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BVZNXY5H/ref=x_gr_bb_amazon?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_bb_amazon-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0BVZNXY5H&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2" target="_blank">The Flatwoods Monster And The Little Green Men" is now available in Things Improbable,</a> an anthology of stories about cryptids—those folkloric creatures like Bigfoot and Nessie that don't officially exist.</p><p>My story is about <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flatwoods_monster" target="_blank">The Flatwoods Monster,</a> a mysterious, possibly alien creature seen in West Virginia in 1952.</p><p>It's also about being transgender, and how much you are willing to sacrifice to become the person—or, in this case, the cryptid—you always wanted to be. </p>Jennifer Lee Rossmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02063589960452256646noreply@blogger.com0