Janie Cheaney

Founder of Redeemer Reader, Author

J. B. Cheaney (Janie to her friends) became a reader early on, but never thought she’d become a writer. As a shy, skinny kid growing up in Texas, books were her best friends. Sometime in her mid-twenties, she thought she might try writing one. While waiting to get a book published (20 years!), Janie turned her writing practice into Wordsmith, a series of creative writing workbooks to help kids discover the joys of competent writing for themselves.

Now that she’s overcome her shyness, books are no longer Janie’s best friends. But a well-crafted story or poem still moves her to tears or laughter or constructive disagreement or deeper understanding of herself and this endlessly fascinating world we live in. That’s the value of a good book. If you’re reading this, you probably want your own children or students to discover that value for themselves. So every single week, Janie shares her ongoing book-reading adventures with you, right here on Redeemed Reader.

Janie has written six novels for tweens and teens: My Friend the Enemy, In the Middle of Somewhere, Somebody on This Bus is Going to Be Famous, I Don’t Know How the Story Ends, The Playmaker, and The True Prince. She is also a long-time and well-respected contributor to WORLD Magazine.