Of course you don’t, yet—that’s why I’m launching this site, to introduce myself and my stories to the reading world. I’m Jillian Ullrich, a writer of young adult science fiction. My first novel, Blue Karma, is underway and I hope to publish it in spring 2015.

Why start sharing all this before I’ve even published? Because I believe storytelling is not a closed circuit of ideas transmitted from author to audience. It’s a connection. The readers are every bit as important as the storyteller. I don’t want to just dump a few copies of my novel at a local bookstore and expect people to read them; I want readers to be part of the journey.

My blog will share the trials and triumphs of publishing novels (along with some offbeat insights about the writing life). Through my WattPad page, I’ll share advance chapters of my works in progress. Getting your feedback will help me craft the final product. I want to build dialogue with my readers right from the start: my stories, after all, are for you!

To borrow from the Bard via Aldous Huxley:

“O, wonder!

How many goodly creatures are there here!

How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,

That has such people in’t!”

― William Shakespeare, The Tempest

Science fiction is the business of creating and exploring new worlds. And those worlds only exist because readers—such people, indeed!—give them life in imagination. So keep your frequency tuned here and join me on the adventure. It’s going to be a great ride!