Site icon Michele Pariza Wacek

The Story Behind The Story: “This Happened to Jessica”

This Happened To Jessica

Years and years ago, the idea behind It Began With a Lie flickered into life.

The premise of a book, returning to a childhood home that may also be haunted, ended up, well, haunting me for decades.

I shared the story around how I finally got myself to sit down and write It Began With a Lie here, but what I didn’t share was how that ended up being the seed for Jessica.

You see, when I started fleshing out the story, I realized there was more to Becca’s story than what I originally thought.

Jessica was there, too. And her story also needed to be told.

So, I went to work. And for a few months, what happened to Jessica was intertwined with Becca’s return to Redemption story.

It was a mess.

I had so many threads I couldn’t keep track of them.

The more I wrote, the longer and more complicated the book seemed to become.

I started to despair I would ever finish it.

Until the day I woke up and realized I was going about this all wrong.

This wasn’t a single book. It was a series.

More than that, Jessica deserved her own book.

So, I went through the slow (painful) process of untying the two story lines and putting them into two books.

I also realized there was more to Becca’s story (but more on that with the third, and maybe fourth! book).

Once I saw this was a series, I was able to relax because I now felt like I had the space to fully tell everyone’s stories. Not just Becca’s, but also Daniel’s, Mia’s Daphne’s, Chrissy’s.

And, of course, Jessica’s.

Every story has its own story. The behind-the-scenes story of how it got written. This is the story of This Happened to Jessica. Share on X

It’s best if you read the books in order, so if you haven’t read It Began With a Lie start with that one.

And, once you’re ready for Jessica, check it out here.

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