An Interview with Jennifer Rogers
As a children’s author, I believe in the power of stories to help kids explore and navigate life’s challenging moments. My stories touch on important themes of friendship, loss, resilience, and finding strength within. I believe that even the toughest topics can be approached with sensitivity, warmth, hope, and courage to empower children as they grow.
Ever since I was a child, I have been fascinated with the power of a story to take us on new adventures to places, far and wide, real or imagined. It was through my own personal life experiences in trauma and loss that I realized part of my healing is writing stories for children professionally.
Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?
My journey as an author started with the idea: What if I could write a story that helps children navigate through life’s difficult moments? That question inspired me to write my first book, Our Garden of Friendship: Growing After the Loss of a Friend, which is about a child experiencing the loss of her best friend. My hope is for this story to bring comfort, hope, and courage to any child who might be experiencing something similar.
What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?
When I’m not writing, I’m creating delicious meals from scratch, working fun jigsaw puzzles, or curled under my favorite fleece blanket with a good book. I have worked in the banking and cybersecurity industries.
Tell us the story of your book’s title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?
The story behind the title is rooted in the book’s central metaphor. Maya and Ava’s friendship is like a garden in that it is nurtured and grows through love, laughter, memories, and shared experiences. Following Ava’s death, Maya struggles with the emptiness of the loss of her friend. By planting a garden in honor of Ava, Maya learns that though her friend is no longer physically with her, the love, memories, and friendship will continue to live on through renewal and growth.
The title reflects the journey of hope, resilience, and healing as we move through the loss of a loved one.
What part of publishing your book made it feel real for the first time?
The moment my book felt real was when I held the finished product in my hands and the powerful feeling of knowing I created something tangible that can positively impact readers, especially in an ever-changing, and sometimes uncertain, world.
If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?
Rainbow by Kacey Musgraves, because the song doesn’t pretend difficult things don’t happen. It softly reminds us that beauty, light, and hope are still present afterward.
What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?
I hope readers of all ages will walk away reminded that even within the loss of a loved one, the friendship, love, and shared memories don’t disappear. They become part of the fabric of who we are. I hope children learn and understand that it is okay to grieve, to remember, and find joy again.
Through the power of story, I hope to contribute to a world where children feel seen, listened to, and valued as individuals. Whether they’re reading on their own, or flipping through pages with an adult, I want each child to feel and believe they are not alone on their journey, and that the magic of stories brings us together as individuals in unity for a common purpose.
What was the most rewarding/meaningful part of publishing your book?
The most rewarding part of publishing Our Garden of Friendship: Growing After the Loss of a Friend is the knowledge that something born from my heart can serve as a source of comfort for a child or family experiencing loss of a loved one. I hope a young reader may feel or think, “It is okay to miss my friend. I am not alone. She is with me in love and happy memories.”
What creative projects are you currently working on?
I am working on two additional children’s books, one of which centers around the theme of remembering to look internally at the gifts we individually have and bring to the world without the need to seek external validation to feel valued.
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