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writing groups. With each success and failure, Jennifer
became more resilient as a writer while still being true
to her values.

Exploring Stories Through Ice Cream

When asked about her most memorable moments
while working on this project, Jennifer remembers an
incident when she acted on impulse, something she
doesn’t often do, “My time spent overnight at the home
of a dairy plant owner was one of the most memorable
moments of this project,” Jennifer said “I had wanted to
contact an ice cream place in Ohio, but got the runaround.
But I was able to get in touch with the dairy owner that
supplied this shop. He suggested that I stay overnight
since it would be nearly a two-hour drive from where I
was. I canceled my Airbnb and made the drive to a site
unknown, which is very different from my personality.
In the dark, everything seemed quite sinister and I slept
in a small attic alcove in a former art studio. Animals
were making noise throughout the night.”
Her time in Istanbul was also memorable. When
she arrived there, protests had just erupted and the city
was in chaos. Her time in Istanbul was also memorable.
When she arrived there, protests had just erupted and
the city was in chaos. At the time, the Taksim Gezi Park
had been targeted for urban development, leading to a
sit-in protest in response. This sparked an even bigger
wave of demonstrations and civil unrest throughout
Turkey, with people protesting issues such as freedom
of press and assembly, as well as the AKP government’s
approach to secularism.

A Creative Journey of Self-Discovery predicted and help others discover new places with the
best way – wandering through neighborhoods with ice
Jennifer initially studied computer science in col- cream. According to her “each chapter of Ice Cream
lege, but eventually she chose an adjacent major with the Travel Guide is mainly structured around this idea”.
intention of working in the same field. She decided to While researching, Jennifer started crowdfunding
look at it from a more creative perspective and applied on Kickstarter. Despite the success of her campaign,
her understanding of human behavior to her studies. This Jennifer still experienced a few setbacks during her jour-
led to graduate school and then professional work as a ney as an author – such as facing criticism from instruc- Ice Cream Travel
UX designer or design researcher. Despite the success tors or even close friends who questioned her concept.
of that path, she ultimately felt unfulfilled. “One instructor bluntly told me that the ice cream Guide has a unique
At the same time, her curiosity about the world led and the stories of the people who make it don’t make
her to travel a lot. She sought out experiences beyond sense. Yet when a trusted friend questioned the book’s approach to food
the conventional tourist hotspots – local foods, stories concept, that was worse. You could say that the deep
from locals, and ice cream carts. This inspired her to critiques surfaced existing self-doubt and I didn’t work writing as it focuses
create Ice Cream Travel Guide; a journey to find some- on the book for almost a year.” said Jennifer. on stories, rather than
thing that spoke to her values of discovery and joy. Yet she never gave up and kept pushing forward
Through this project, Jennifer was able to stretch despite these obstacles – taking writing classes to devel- recommendations.
beyond her comfort zone in ways she could not have op her skills and workshopping her book chapters in

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