About Jean Hackel

The author of Theresa et al. uses Jean Hackel as her pen name. It's also her maiden name and the name that connects to the sensibility of her novel, especially the character of Annie. 

"Annie wasn't a character of substance in the first draft," she says. "I just wanted someone in the wings who would act as an observer. I hadn't thought much about what kind of a person she was or how she might be involved in the plot's major moments. But as I wrote, she kept grabbing space and surprising me---until I realized where she was coming from.

"I thought about the novel's development in the mornings as I walked on the treadmill, imagining scenes and hearing dialogue. Then one day I looked up at the wall in front of the treadmill and noticed an old school photo of my thirteen-year-old self, an in-your-face kid who wouldn't shut up. I suddenly realized that Annie shouldn't be curtailed. I might add that she's a smarter, braver thirteen-year-old than I ever was."