To Iraq & Back
by Jessica Scott

From bestselling novelist Jessica Scott comes the emotional first person journey to war and back again.

In 2009, Army second lieutenant Jessica Scott deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn. It was a year of many firsts. This is the first person journey through a combat tour in Iraq, through being a woman in the army and learning to be an officer in the unforgiving environment of a brigade combat team. This is the journey of a writer, learning to find her voice. This is the journey of a mother, confronting the emotions of leaving her children. This is the story of an inexperienced lieutenant, growing into a leader. This is the journey as it happened, without commentary. This is her blog. There are many blogs from the Iraq war, but this one is hers.

Jessica Scott's Bio

Jessica Scott is a career army officer, mother of two daughters, three cats and three dogs, wife to a career NCO and wrangler of all things stuffed and fluffy. She is a terrible cook and even worse housekeeper, but she’s a pretty good shot with her assigned weapon and someone liked some of the stuff she wrote. Somehow, her children are pretty well adjusted and her husband still loves her, despite burned water and a messy house.

The Soldier

I’m a career soldier, with 16 years in the Army and I love everything about Army life. I joined right out of high school and was promptly shipped off to Germany where I met my husband. I went from Sergeant First Class (E7) to Second Lieutenant (01E) in 2007.

Now, I’m a company commander in charge of 130 soldiers, a mom with two young kids who never sit still, and an Army wife, whose husband is back in Iraq.

Join me at my blog, Twitter, and Facebook because the Army adventure never stops!

The Author

Until a few years ago, I had no idea hard writing really was. I’d always written and started several projects over the years, burning out after a few dozen pages. After the War was the first novel I ever finished and it will always hold a special place in my heart because of that, even if it now remains under my bed. Blogging from Iraq landed me a spot on PBS Point of View, tackling tough issues involving women and war. Its an experience I’ll never forget.

After the War was followed by multiple novels, all pulled from my experiences as an soldier who has lived through both being deployed and being the spouse left at home with the kids. Most of those books will never see daylight.