Ashley
Ashley Jordan (she/her) is a millennial from Atlanta by way of Brooklyn. She attended Spelman College, obtaining a degree in Psychology and a lifelong love and appreciation for women’s stories. While she currently works in public health, she has embraced writing as a hobby since penning her first short story in second grade. When Ashley isn’t at the day job or writing, she is either at a Beyoncé concert, rewatching Mad Men, or arguing about basketball with anyone who will listen. In 2023, she became a Reese’s Book Club LitUp Fellow. In 2025, Ashley released her debut novel, ONCE UPON A TIME IN DOLLYWOOD, which became a Reese’s Book Club Pick, AN instant USA Today Bestseller, and was named one of the best books of the year by Amazon, Audible, and NPR.
Vital Information
I’m rooting for everybody Black.*
My favorite place in the world is my bed, followed closely by New Orleans.
I am exceedingly, obnoxiously millennial. MTV and Disney raised me, and you’ll have to pry these gifs from my cold, dead hands.
I hate being late. I also hate being early.
I loved Friends AND Living Single.
I think Tuesday is the worst day of the week. Thursdays are the best.
My favorite meal is fried wings and pork fried rice from your friendly neighborhood Chinese food spot.
I won a national spelling bee when I was in sixth grade.
I firmly believe Real Housewives of Atlanta is one of the greatest TV shows in existence.**
I learned to braid my own hair during COVID lockdown and have been doing it ever since.
I hate pickles.
My dad went to school with Denzel Washington. I went to school with his son.***
My outie enjoys autumn and winter, but dislikes spring and summer, largely for allergy-related reasons.
*There are notable exceptions.
**Seasons 1-10 only.
***Okay, not technically the same school, but Morehouse and Spelman are siblings!
“I really think the range of emotions and perceptions I have had access to as a Black person and as a female person are greater than those of people who are neither. So it seems to me that my world did not shrink because I was a Black female writer. It just got bigger.”
— Toni Morrison
Five Things
01. Five Novels I’ll Always Recommend
Paradise by Toni Morrison
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
One Day in December by Josie Silver
Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
02. Five ALBUMS THAT BASICALLY DEFINE ME AS A PERSON
THE MISEDUCATION OF LAURYN HILL – LAURYN HILL
SONGS ABOUT JANE – MAROON 5
CHANNEL ORANGE – FRANK OCEAN
CTRL – SZA
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers – Kendrick Lamar
03. FIVE MOVIES I’LL WATCH WHENEVER THEY’RE ON
THE APARTMENT (1960)
MY BEST FRIEND’S WEDDING (1997)
SHREK 2 (2004)
ONCE (2007)
MOONLIGHT (2016)
04. FIVE PERFECT EPISODES OF TELEVISION
The Suitcase (Mad Men)
Lowkey Happy (Insecure)
START (The Americans)
Free Churro (BoJack Horseman)
The Goof Who Sat by the Door (Atlanta)
