Welcome!

Welcome to jeanspraker.com. I hope you like it here.

About me

According to SEO experts, every website is supposed to have an About page. Thus, this page exists. The problem is deciding what to tell you.

Editor

When I tell people I am an editor, they think I am a rule-following, writer-hating zombie hell bent on eating the brains of innocent, young writers.

What people think editors do

That’s not true. I love my writers, especially with a nice Chianti.

I prefer to think of myself as the editor who wears orange nail polish. I know the rules and enjoy breaking them—when needed.

I wear orange nail polish for many reasons. First, the color reminds me of my alma mater: Clemson University (BA ’93, MA ’95). Second, the polish reminds me to treat people as equals–always. Third, the paint splatter reminds me that even a messy manuscript can have beautiful artistic value.

Coffee lover

I drink a lot of coffee. In India, I preferred Starbucks. I collect mugs from around the world. This one is from Korea.

Starbucks Korea coffee mug with Seoul in Hangul script, Italian dictionary, and In Other Words by Jhumpa Lahiri on Amazon Kindle.

Reader

I love my Amazon Kindle. It helps me read diverse books and stay up to date with the latest Indian bestsellers, like Gujarat Files.

Gujarat Files by Rana Ayyub on Amazon Kindle is a book that seeks to uncover the truth about the 2002 Godhra riots and the encounters that followed.

Book reviewer

If I like a book, I review it. The Adivasi Will Not Dance by Hansda Sowvendra Shankar was one of my favorite books last year.

The Adivasi Will Not Dance by Hansda Sowvendra Shankar is a collection of short stories about Santhals and Adivasi people in India.

Writer

I am an alumna of Anita Nair’s Anita’s Attic writing program in Bangalore, India. These are my batchmates.

Me and my amazing Anita’s Attic batchmates. Anita’s Attic gave me many gifts. The wonderful support and friendship of my batchmates is among the most cherished.

While in Bangalore, I finished the first draft of my book and drank a lot of filter coffee.

Filter coffee from the JW Marriott in UB City. While in Bangalore, the Marriott became my regular breakfast location. I would load up on filter coffee and then go write at the British Library.

Dosa lover

I love Indian food and have a particular love for South Indian breakfasts. I highly recommend the masala dosas at MTR.

Masala dosa with ghee, sambhar, and mint chutney at MTR. Also pictured is Chain of Custody by Anita Nair. A scene in the book takes place at MTR.

Blogger

I don’t update this blog as often as I should. I have been told that websites are obsolete, and the real action is on social media. You can find me on these channels:

I know I should probably be on Tumblr and Snapchat, but I’m not. Technically, I have a YouTube channel, but I have only posted one video to it. You should watch this one instead:

Poor Peanut! The things he does to help me get more likes.

Job seeker

I have recently returned to the U.S. after living in Asia and the Middle East for five years.

expatriate multilanguage wordcloud background concept glowing

This expatriate word cloud includes every language I have studied: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Hindi, and Korean. My fluency in these languages varies widely, but each language has given me important insights into language, culture, and people.

You can learn about my experience by viewing my professional portfolio or finding me on LinkedIn.

8 thoughts on “About Jean”

I hear you on India.. it’s like getting a punch in the face but you’re not sure whether it’s out of love or hate. I miss it to bits. Loved the post on suicide and the semi colon tattoo!

Much love from Holland!

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