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Jenna Mather

@jennamather.bsky.social
50 followers 15 following 100 posts

Poet & writer enjoying the Subplots of life. Work published in petrichor, wildscape, and others.

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Reposted by Jenna Mather
The Bloomin’ Onion | **SUBMISSIONS ALWAYS OPEN** @bloominonionlit.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
🎶 It’s the moooost wonderful tiiiiime…to submit 🎶 Happy Sept 1. We’re open. As always. 💚🧅
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
I wrote about why I love writing workshops and some of the key things I learned from workshops while I was getting my undergrad degree at Iowa! subplotswithjennamather.substack.com/p/are-writin...
subplotswithjennamather.substack.com
Are writing workshops useful?
Workshops have always been one of my favorite ways to grow as a writer, so I was surprised when I read some recent online conversation that portrayed workshops in a negative way—namely as rooms that s...
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Thank you @bloominonionlit.bsky.social for publishing my poem “Skinny Dipping” today!
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Reposted by Jenna Mather
The Bloomin’ Onion | **SUBMISSIONS ALWAYS OPEN** @bloominonionlit.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
OUT NOW! jennamather.bsky.social
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
I’m feeling excited about having a new poem out tomorrow. I wrote this piece in 2024, so sticking by it through a dozen or more rejections over the years hasn’t always been easy. But I always liked it, so I kept submitting. Never give up on your work, writers! You have to love it first.🤍
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Thank you, @bloominonionlit.bsky.social!🤍
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
New essay out now on my Substack about receiving rejections as a writer and why it’s gotten easier over time! subplotswithjennamather.substack.com/p/do-writing...
subplotswithjennamather.substack.com
Do writing rejections get easier?
I’ve been thinking about this question a lot recently because, well, my stories and poems are experiencing a little streak of rejections from literary magazines.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
I guess I like writing water-related poems? I had a poem get published in April called “Appomattox” about searching for a shipwreck in Lake Michigan, and next week my poem “Skinny Dipping” comes out!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
Anybody try to work on their novel and just have… no ideas?! I’m at the very beginning stages of planning my story, and I’ve been stuck at this point for a while. Any advice on how to get through it?
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
What a cool idea / opportunity!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Lately it feels like almost anything is easier than writing. Cleaning, grocery shopping, working—all the little things that need to get done but sop up so much time. It’s hard to keep prioritizing your art when life never stops. Figuring out how to balance this as well as I can is my new priority.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
Heard the news today that I have a new poem coming out in August from @bloominonionlit.bsky.social! It’s a spicy little love poem called “Skinny dipping” and I’m so excited it finally found a home!🌊🤍
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Reposted by Jenna Mather
petrichor @petrichorlit.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
"...But there is only silence and you, air-tanked and plunged deep under the surface like a needle...." Jenna Mather's "Appomattox," a poem for a Milwaukee shipwreck. Read the full piece in the 10th anniversary issue of petrichor. petrichormag.com/30-jenna-mat...
A ruined pier stretches out into Lake Michigan from Atwater Beach in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
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Reposted by Jenna Mather
petrichor @petrichorlit.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
petrichor is extending our submission portal. Both general subs and subs to Pebbles vol. 7 (micropoems, no more than 5 lines each!) will now be accepted till June 15. Send us your best poems! It doesn't have to be intelligent, but it better not be artificial (brb gotta delete our linktree rn).
A banner reading: SUBMISSIONS EXTENDED! General & Pebbles by June 15, with a url petrichormag.com. Banner over a closeup image of woodsy thyme-moss, feathery-textured, and some leaves.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Sometimes waiting feels like the biggest part of being a writer. I have so many poems and short stories out waiting for consideration from lit mags right now, and the anticipation has me feeling hopeful and nervous anytime I check my email!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 25/04/2026
I got some exciting print publication news this morning!!! Thanks, Lunchbreak Review!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
My poem “Appomattox” (inspired by the shipwreck off of Atwater Beach in Milwaukee) was published in @petrichorlit.bsky.social today!!! Thanks so much for including me in this issue.
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Reposted by Jenna Mather
petrichor @petrichorlit.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
petrichor 30, our 10th Anniversary issue, is here! feat. CAConrad, Rosaire Appel, Jose-Luis Moctezuma, Sy Hoahwah, Orchid Tierney and many more! petrichormag.com/petrichor-30...
Art by Rosaire Appel. Intersecting freewritten lines mixed with pieces of text collage over paper bag texture.
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petrichor @petrichorlit.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Our 10th Anniversary issue drops Monday. Yay.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
A new essay is up on my Substack this morning! This one is inspired by National Poetry Month—it’s about how the last year has been for me as a poet and some things I’ve learned along the way! open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Reflections on another year as a poet
Stories and thoughts for National Poetry Month from another year as a poet.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
My poem “Appomattox” will be out this week in petrichor journal! I wrote it last summer after searching for the shipwreck of the same name off of Atwater Beach on Lake Michigan. It’s a yearning, summery love poem, I can’t wait to share it!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
This weekend’s reading vibe…📖🤍
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Happy National Poetry Month! This is what I’ve been reading to celebrate…
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
One of my first Substack posts I ever wrote was in honor of National Poetry Month! Bringing it back since it’s that time of year.🤍📝 open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Why I love poetry
Musings on the form for National Poetry Month.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
I recently wrote a guide for submitting to literary magazines! It’s the kind of thing I wish another writer had sat down and walked me through when I was working on my very first submissions. I hope it helps you get published! open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
A Beginner's Guide to Submitting Your Work to Literary Magazines
Because intimidating processes shouldn't hold you back from sharing your awesome work with the world!
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Reposted by Jenna Mather
petrichor @petrichorlit.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Slight delay on the 10th Anniversary issue. It's our biggest in 10 years, so there's a lot to put together. But it will be worth it. In the meantime, subs open in two hours yaaaaay.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
New cooking-themed unconventional sort of love poem out now on my Substack!🍳🧄🧂 open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Garlic press
Another cooking-themed love poem...
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
I haven’t posted much here recently—I’m mostly on Threads and Instagram—but if you missed it there, I had a new poem published in January in wildscape journal! It’s inspired by the time I broke my foot last year.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
My poem “We need to break up” was published today in Discretionary Love! I’m so grateful to the team there for publishing this piece!🥰🌱🤎🍊
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
My poem “We need to break up” is out now in Discretionary Love! So grateful to them for publishing this piece.🤎🌱🍊 www.discretionarylove.com/we-need-to-b...
discretionarylove.com
We need to break up, Discretionary Love
the soil, i heard someone say, to keep growing the garden we need to break up the soil together, to press our palms into the hot dirt after a rainstorm...
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
I just heard one of my love poems will be published in Discretionary Love this week!🥰
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
I’ve been a bit more quiet online lately; I’ve been trying to find a natural balance where I feel like I have time to write, read, work, and do everything else—while also being less stressed and more present. I don’t know how successful it’s been, but I’m almost done writing chapter 1 of my book.😁
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
I don’t post on here very often, but wanted to share that one of my poems will be published by wildscape in January!!! I can’t wait for this piece to be out.☺️🥳
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
New post out on my Substack about the importance of persistence and my two poems that were published earlier this week!🤍 open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Two Poems Published in Boats Against the Current + Thoughts on Persistence
How one of my poems (that I wrote in 2023!!!) finally got published.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 10/08/2025
A new essay is up! I wrote about how I’ve struggled to write over this past year. I never realized how hard it can be to feel creative during big life changes—I hope this essay reaches other writers who are also trying to find their voice again. open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Are you having trouble writing? Me too.
How a creative lull is helping me rediscover my voice as a writer.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 08/08/2025
A new essay will be up on my Substack on Sunday! I’m sharing about how much I’ve struggled to write over this past year and how I found solace in taking life moment by moment creatively. This is my most cathartic post yet, so I’m excited for it to be up soon! ☺️ open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Subplots with Jenna Mather | Substack
Sometimes the subplot is the best part of the story. Welcome to Subplots, where I share poems, stories, and essays about whatever's on my mind as an emerging writer. Click to read Subplots with Jenna ...
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 19/07/2025
A new post is up on my Substack! This time, I wrote about struggling to make progress on outlining / drafting my novel and finding joy in reading great books or writing shorter works along the way. open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
#2: In Between Moments
On ideas and writing little things during long projects.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
What I’ve been reading these days… I just finished Problematic Summer Romance, which was the breezy, funny romance I’ve been craving to get out of my reading slump. Now I’m on to The Dry Season, a memoir that I’ve been dying to get my hands on since I first heard about it!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 15/06/2025
I’m so excited to have two new poems published by boats against the current in September!!! I wrote one of the poems in 2023–it’s been one of my favorites for a long time, and I’m so excited to finally share it.😊
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
I just started a new section of my Substack called The Drafting Diaries, where I’ll be sharing all things process / inspiration as I work through the first draft (and beyond!) of my novel! The first post is out now. open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
The Drafting Diaries
Welcome to The Drafting Diaries, where I'm sharing my novel writing process in real time.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 07/06/2025
A good memoir never fails to blow my mind!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 01/06/2025
I shared this poem on my Substack a few weeks ago, but I love love poems, so here it is on Bluesky😁🩵🌊
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
I love writing little poems in my notes app
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 10/05/2025
My poem “eyetooth” is out in Bitter Melon Review today!!!❤️🦷🩸📝
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
I heard today that a poem I wrote is going to be published by Bitter Melon Review!!!🥳🥳
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
I got my first personalized rejection from a lit mag last week! It meant to much to me to know that my work was enjoyed, even if it wasn’t the right fit for publication. 🥹💕
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 04/05/2025
New love poem out on my Substack today! #Poetry open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Lighthouse
A love poem about finding the light.
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 04/05/2025
Got some sunshine today at a tulip farm!☀️🌷💐 My goal this spring—do things worth writing about.😁✏️
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 26/04/2025
I’ve been quiet on here lately because work & life have been busy, but I had time this morning to read some poetry while drinking a delicious coffee, which was just what I needed. Hoping to find some time to write soon!
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Jenna Mather @jennamather.bsky.social · 12/04/2025
My essay about why I love poetry is now up on my Substack!!! This was a really fun piece to write.😊❤️ open.substack.com/pub/subplots...
open.substack.com
Why I love poetry
Musings on the form for National Poetry Month.
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