Showing Up to the Page: A Conversation with Jenna Elyse Johnson

A cozy conversation on creativity and showing up

Hi Friends,

I was so excited to sit down and chat with my longtime critique partner, Jenna Elyse Johnson. It’s so lovely to talk and share moments with someone who has been part of your journey from the beginning.

Jenna Elyse Johnson (she/her) is the author of Every Body Move!, I Spark Like Lightning, the Mae & Malibu chapter book series, and PENNY’S PAGES. Growing up, Jenna’s favorite part of the school day was storytime, so she decided to make a career out of it. She now works as a bookseller, teacher, and her most fun job, children’s book author. As a disabled author, her passion is to highlight disability joy through her writing. She also tries to sneak a dog into every story she writes. Jenna lives in Northern California with her two Labradors who love storytime just as much as she does.

Jenna recently revealed the covers for her upcoming chapter books, Mae & Malibu. Aren’t they so cute?

Here’s our conversation. Enjoy!

Here is the link to the fun and energetic sing-along for Every Body Move!

Showing up in Every Season

✨ It’s okay not to write every day. Showing up can look different in different seasons. Jenna shared that even when she isn’t actively writing, just thinking about her story keeps her in a creative mindset.

She also writes in very cozy setups, often with her dog on the couch beside her and a heated blanket nearby. Comfort is a big part of her creative process. I also loved discovering that we both love our heated blankets and are fully committed to being cozy all year round.

Waiting for the day we can take our trip to Italy, the Amalfi Coast, Jenna! 😊

Creative nuggets from Jenna

🎧 Jenna finds inspiration outside of writing, especially through kidlit podcasts like You May Contribute a Verse.

🌙 Some of her best ideas show up unexpectedly, even in the middle of the night when she’s awake.

📝 Writing prompts help her ease back into her work when things feel stuck.

🧣 Cozy is part of the process. Warm spaces, blankets, and comfort help her stay grounded and creatively open.

After our chat

After we wrapped, I kept thinking about how much our writing lives have changed and how much they haven’t.

This conversation felt like a reminder that there’s no one right way to be a writer, just your way, in your season.

How are you showing up to the page lately?

Writers’ Corner Wednesday ✏️

In my Substack chats, I started Writers’ Corner Wednesdays, where I have open discussions with other writers about all things writing that I’m curious about. This week, I asked how you’re showing up to your writing, and here are some of the responses:

• Camden S. Holley: I started writing concepts for two new children’s books.

• Sophia Chang: I had a deadline to submit my first chapter for a critique. Illness actually removed overthinking. I was too exhausted and foggy to do anything else but focus on my massive rewrite. Constraints like page count also helped me find my ending sooner. I’ve always loved the creativity that comes from limits.

• Adela Dalto Moraux: “Sharing Can Create Change” is my motto. I used AI to explore my Christmas song A Jingle and A Jangle, which led to a demo video I liked, but not enough to replace my own vision for the book.

• Allison Cook: After a writing conference reminded me not to only focus on big projects, I wrote flash fiction and had so much fun.

• Deb Madonna: I have gone into hyperdrive. I just want to get all the pieces in place.

• Cynthia Wong: I almost threw away a poem, but instead I’ve been. revisiting and revising it daily, trusting that writing lives in the editing

• Adriana Gutierrez: I participated in the poetry challenge on Monday.

• Stacey Ramirez: I worked on my blog, watched a webinar replay, and over lunch with friends, we came up with a new picture book idea I can’t wait to write!

WOW! It’s so amazing to see how others in this community are showing up to their writing in so many different ways, and how one step at a time, we keep moving forward. ✨

Thank you all for sharing. I’m rooting for you!

🎁✨ GIVEAWAY!✨🎁

Jenna is generously giving away a copy of I Spark Like Lightning! Comment below to enter. Good luck!

I hope something in this post makes it feel okay to keep going and keep showing up to the page.

Thank you for being here with me.

Sonrisas,