JESSICA KNUTH
Writer. Wanderer.
nonfiction
HOMEPLACE
Jessica Knuth is the author of Homeplace, a memoir based in the foothills of Appalachia. In this story, the author delves into her relationship with her father while recounting his long battle and eventual death from cancer. By dipping into the past, she tries to reconcile the golden, pre-cancer days of childhood with a present that is uncertain, searching to find meaning and belonging in a world where her father no longer exists.
Jessica earned her Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles. She currently lives in Europe, though she calls the Washington DC area home. Her work has been featured in The Manifest-Station, BLVDS magazine, and on various blogs. Her newest poetry will be published April 2025.
There is an unexpected sense of loneliness in watching the dead body of someone you love being taken away from your home. Alone in the back of a car. Zipped up inside a body bag. Driving away into resounding blackness.
fiction
Animalia
After learning that her beloved father is dying, Ria leaves the safety of the human village in search of a cure- an elusive, magical flower rumored to heal the dying. In order to obtain it, she must go against the elders' long standing rule that prohibits any human from leaving the village. This is necessary, since Ria lives in the only human village in a world where humans are not at the top of the food chain, occupying the role of hunted rather than hunter.
Ria journeys into the unknown dangers of the lawless Wild, past an Avian city hewn from crystal and glass, past a frosty ice village inhabited by noble Wolves, and past a colorful Feline city carved from gold and precious gems. Her pilgrimage takes her to unexpected places where she finds herself unearthing generational secrets and forging unexpected friendships. She quickly learns that magic is not free and she must be willing to pay, even if the currency is her own life.
Animalia is a 41,000 word young adult novel, the first in a series of three, which expl0res the magical, perilous world Ria calls home and the complicated relationships between the species that survive there. Animalia tackles themes of friendship and familial love, overcoming fear, and breaking generational curses.
“One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple.”
Jack Kerouac
