BIO
JESSICA JIJI was born and raised in New York City where her Iraqi father settled after being a stateless refugee for a dozen years. He imbued in her deep pride in Arab culture and huge respect for the immigrant hustle. She built a career as a speechwriter and documentary filmmaker at the United Nations, learning along the way that entertainment can be more important than diplomacy to world peace. She has benefited enormously from studying with Jill Chamberlain and training with Roadmap Writers. Her novels have been published by HarperCollins and translated into Italian. Her scripts have won the Page Gold and other accolades. Skateboarding with her three sons is more than worth the 20 stitches and nine-inch metal plate holding her arm together.