In October of 2019, I self-published a short story about a traumatic life experience. After my mild 15 minutes of fame wrapped up in December, my husband signed me up for a monthly subscription box for women and non-binary writers. “Because you’re a writer,” he said as I opened the Christmas gift. The subscription included a writing sample, prompt, little curated gifts and, a letter of encouragement put together by two women in New Mexico.
I’m sure you know what came next, after two months of receiving the subscription box, COVID-19 hit and put a halt on everything. But the Plume gals knew how to pivot. Or pirouette as they preferred. Soon a check-in was born and from April until the present, I spent nearly every Thursday night at my desk checking in with writers from all over the country. After the first call, I felt like I had made 10 new friends.
The group ranged from women close to my age to a woman in her 70’s that could paint pictures with a pen and paper and once combined with her soothing voice made for enchanting stories. This group constantly inspires me to write, to listen, and to open up to new people. I’ve been lucky enough to share what I work on and learn about other writers — not only professionally, but more importantly, on a personal level. As I listened to updates and shared writing prompts, I discovered more about every single person in there. We all bonded with each other in a way that was new to me.
Saturday evening I saw a message from one of the women that founded Plume asking if I could jump on Zoom or the phone as the message she needed to relay was a little too important to send over Instagram. My stomach sank, thinking it had to be about Jenn, the other founder, as I had missed her for the last few weeks.
After a call with Melanie, I climbed back into my bed and told my husband the news. Still stunned, and unsure of how to react. I didn’t have the chance to meet Jenn in person, so how can I mourn the loss of someone I only interact with on Zoom once a week? But the truth is, I knew Jenn. I knew what was in her heart. I learned so much in just a few months. She gave me opportunities to share my work and my thoughts on multiple platforms and believed in my writing. While she had no interest in sports, she was beyond thrilled to hear my update about writing for Sports Illustrated and was happy to share the articles and referred to me as one of her fellow Plumesters.
Jenn was so passionate about her work, even if she was frustrated and working through writer’s block. It inspired me to have the same drive and push through my problems, knowing that whatever I put out there, I’d have multiple women standing behind me like a little cheer squad.
Jenn will be deeply missed. I wish I could pick up some flowers from Trader Joe’s and pay my respects, but unfortunately a trip out west is impossible right now. I’m so lucky I was able to have her in my life, even for a short time. She was truly one of a kind. I’ll miss her every time I sit down and write.