Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. J Bliss.
Dr. Bliss, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I have been fighting to be a writer forever. My senior year in college included the publisher firing me as an investigative reporter once he learned I was pregnant. Then, my writing posed a disruption for my ex-spouse; well, he presented it as my writing, and later, I learned it was more, which is why my decision to leave was not up for negotiation. I took the first step to believing in myself when I was in a place where no one believed in me. I was determined to sacrifice and invest everything I put in a relationship of twenty-plus years that ended officially in July 2022. Let’s say I have a newfound respect for July 4th, for I gained the freedom to be my authentic self unapologetically. In 2017, I launched my first novel, but the first book I self-published was born years prior. I was great at baking and raised money selling cakes in 2008.
Today, I have over 20 published books. I didn’t know I’d written so many books, and the funny thing is I have more in my arsenal awaiting publication day. Yet, while I was healing from my mother’s death and divorce, someone asked me how many books I had published. It was not a big deal; however, I wowed myself when I cared enough to count. It felt like driving a car in second gear, finally shifting to third gear. I’d awaken to the discovery of myself, recognizing my superpower. That moment ushered me to understand why working to help others makes sense because my life has been a living curriculum to show others how to overcome obstacles. The elements of my life are the molding of one unique recipe to unfold in a creative form. As an author, I adore helping authors attain a dream that is mentally screaming to be constructed with the paint of words. So, I write, I teach others to write, I edit, I coach writers and others who might suffer from similar aspects I encountered in life. There are so many layers of me. I’d hate to limit myself by saying I am only an author, only an editor. I’m forever evolving, and it took me to believe I’m more than what another expects me to be, making me exceptionally me.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My first blow was the struggle with being fired at the height of my career as a writer while single and pregnant. After becoming married, I was a stay-at-home mom, raised the children, and then homeschooled them. Making this decision included placing my aspirations on hold. I did not have support for me to work and afford childcare for four. Besides, I did not see it as the best setting of a foundation for the family. As a writer focusing on being a self-published author, I needed support mentally, emotionally, and physically running the household with managing the children and their demands, and financially. Publishers had turned me down, so I didn’t want to continue placing myself in a predicament that welcomed rejection. Being an entrepreneur gave me control over my schedule to be there with my family. Yet, it was an enormous sacrifice for me to place myself on hold, and with the death of my mother and divorce, it’s been a struggle to learn to be the financial provider of myself and my dreams. Nonetheless, it has allowed me to see how strong I truly am.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m an author, editor, writer-coach, and podcast host. In addition, I am a relationship, intimacy, and trauma awareness coach. My specialty as an author is evoking emotions from the reader, escorting them to a whimsical place beyond the book’s pages. As a coach, I’m known for healing. It doesn’t matter if it’s a story to be created or a life situation I’m assisting with: I care for the person. My goal is to help them see their situation through a different lens to be triumphant as they move forward. As an author, I’m proud to have self-published over 20 books, yet my most recent poetry releases are like the child you bring home from I.C.U. I did everything from a dark place in my life. Seeing the adversities before me and myself blossom makes me most proud. What sets me apart from others is I follow my trend. My exceptional nature sets me apart from others, and I don’t compare myself to anyone. This allows my creativity to come genuinely from my heart. Having overcome various struggles combined with life experiences, not to mention my level of education, makes me a person who relates to real-life situations.
I am not only a person who questioned doctors who said I’d never have a baby; I got pregnant five times while successfully ushering four lives into the world. I am not a person who only researched homeschooling; I implemented homeschooling my children. Because two were diagnosed with learning challenges, I had to return to school to learn how to teach them. I am not only a person who experienced trauma as a child going through a divorce. I became a woman surviving a divorce from hell. I have life experiences that people encounter, and those experiences give a person credibility, experience, and wisdom that no degree can. I value my life experiences because, without them, I would not be able to relate to others as I do. Without my encounters, I would not be the tenacious person I am today.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I took an enormous risk on myself, leaving an environment that was not healthy for me, and I worked to sustain the building of the foundation all my adult life. I was a stay-at-home mom for two decades. My life revolved around my children and ex-spouse. Anything I did, I had to consider being there for the children. I departed from an environment that was not flexible in my growth. There were stipulations on me just being myself, and I had to decide if I wanted to continue being rejected to be me or take on the risk of believing in myself. I wasn’t the financial provider and learned during the divorce journey that my identity was being ripped from me for over 18 years from someone I said I do, too. Had I not risked believing in myself, I never would’ve known.
During the marriage, I suffered from depression, and my health was at its worst. I would hide it and keep pushing, as the world teaches most women to suffer in a predicament against them. Who knows, I might have had a stroke. I might have even killed myself because I was betraying myself daily by staying with someone who never accepted me. I took a risk at one of the scariest moments in the world. While I was grieving for my mother, the world was going through a pandemic while my personal life was a pandemic, but I risked it all to give birth to me. To be me. Everyone deserves to be themselves without judgment, just self.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jblissbooks.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jblissbooks/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jblissbooks
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DrJBliss
- Other: https://www.neverstopwriting.com/
Image Credits
Kauwuane Burton
