Jesse Q Sutanto | |
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Jesse Q. Sutanto is a Chinese-Indonesian author. As of 2023, she has published nine novels for adults, young adults, and middle grade readers. She is most famous for her novels Dial A for Aunties and Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers . Dial A for Aunties won the 2021 Comedy Women in Print Prize and has been optioned for a film by Netflix.
Sutanto grew up in a Chinese-Indonesian family, living in Singapore, Indonesia, California, and Oxford. [1] She speaks Mandarin, Indonesian, and English with her family. [1] She currently lives in Jakarta with her husband, who is English, and their two daughters. [1] [2] [3]
Sutanto received her MFA in creative writing from Oxford University in 2009 and has been writing ever since. [4] [5] She published her first book in 2021 and as of 2023, she has published nine books for readers of all ages.
In 2021, Sutanto published her hit novel, Dial A for Aunties. For this book, Sutanto became the first writer of colour to win the United Kingdom's Comedy Women in Print Prize. [1] The novel, which is a blend of romantic comedy and murder mystery, features Chinese-Indonesian culture through the lens of a girl, her mother and four aunts. [6]
In 2020, before Dial A for Aunties was even published, the film rights were bought by Netflix as a result of a bidding war. [7] [5] Nahnatchka Khan and Chloe Yellin will adapt the novel into a film. [8] Khan was set to direct the project. [7] [5] Sutanto will executive produce the film. [7]
In 2023, the rights for Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers were acquired by Warner Bros. TV for the production of a series adaptation. [8] Mindy Kaling‘s Kaling International and Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Films are set to produce the project. [9]