JENNY ROUGH | WRITER

Growing up I loved to read. And as a freshman at Miami University (Ohio), I still remember the moment when putting words to the page “clicked” in creative writing class. Even as a law student, buried underneath course outlines and textbooks, I knew deep inside I’d be a writer. One day. My fear of living as a starving artist kept me from that path. After graduating summa cum laude from Pepperdine University School of Law, I clerked for a federal district court judge. I then joined the law firm Kirkland & Ellis before returning to Pepperdine to serve as assistant general counsel. As much as I loved working in higher education law, drafting motions and policies didn’t satisfy my yearning to write creatively.

In 2004 I took six weeks off. I logged out of e-mail, unplugged the TV, and didn’t answer the phone. I immersed myself in beach walks, silence, and solitude. I read poetry (well, one poem). I wrote until my arm was nearly dangling by a tendon. In short, I spent six weeks watering my soul. I had a thirsty soul! At the end of my sabbatical, I faced the fact that even though I was a lawyer, I wasn’t really a lawyer. So I wrapped up the odds and ends of my life as an attorney and launched a new career. I’ve been writing ever since.

My work has been published by magazines, newspapers, anthologies, e-zines, and public radio. I am happily married to my husband, Ron, who manages investments for Financial Services Advisory. Although based in Alexandria, Virginia, I spend plenty of time outdoors in the California sunshine and Colorado mountains.

Today, I’ve officially been a freelance writer longer than I practiced law, and I offer workshops and retreats to help other people nurture their creative spirits. I love the way writing connects people to one another. In Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott says, “Think of how many times you have opened a book, read one line, and said ‘Yes!’” That is my prayer–that my writing fosters the gift of Yes!