Jenny Han received her Master of Fine Arts in creative writing in 2006.

Jenny Han, especially known for her books and series The Summer I turned Pretty and To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, is such a talented writer and definitely someone I look up to.

I first found Han through Netflix when I watched the film: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. Instantly, I fell in love with the main character Lara Jean. I ended up watching the other two movies the following weekend. When researching the movie series more, I found it was based on the book series.

I finished the three-book series in two months. I then finished her The Summer I Turned Pretty series in a month. As a person who doesn’t love reading, this was fast. I love the creativity of her romance novels.

I have never seen a story as complex and cute, but still the level of a middle schooler as To all the Boys I’ve Loved Before and The Summer I turned Pretty. The way she words her books has such good imagery and is so comforting as a person who loves young adult romance novels.

Not only is she a good writer, but she is such a role model for being brave and changing social norms. It is known that for the media productions of her books, Han fights for Asian actors and actresses to represent her characters. This was a bold move, but she has revealed this is because, as an Asian-American writer, she had never seen characters that looked like her play the lead in popular romance productions.

In an interview with NBC, Han stated, “there is power in seeing a face that looks like yours do something, be someone.” This is so powerful because I think it’s so important to include different cultures in mainstream media.

Not only does Han cast for Asian culture, she lets that influence her stories. In the series To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, Han focuses parts of her story on Lara Jean’s Korean culture.

When shooting the film’s opening scene, where Lara Jean has her legs up against the wall on her bed, Han recalled, “I remember she was wearing sneakers. I whispered to the director, ‘Can we please, please take off her shoes. She’s in the bed, and they’re on the wall.’” This goes to show her care for keeping the culture in the movie accurate.

In addition, all of Han’s books are so detailed. So much so, that I can envision every single moment she describes. As a goal as a writer, I always look to have my writing as vivid as hers. But not just the moments you can feel, the emotions the characters feel just by the words she uses.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, The Summer I Turned Pretty, and XO Kitty are my comfort books and productions. I’ve watched and read them all multiple times. This goes to show how all equally good and well-crafted Han’s works are.