People like Piper Kerman

Piper Eressea Kerman (born September 28, 1969) is an American author who was indicted in 1998 on charges of felonious money-laundering activities and sentenced to 15 months' detention in a federal correctional facility, of which she eventually served 13 months. Her memoir of her prison experiences, Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison, was adapted into the critically acclaimed Netflix original comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black. Since leaving prison, Kerman has spoken widely about women in prison and about her own experiences there. She now works as a communication strategist for non-profit organizations.

Kerman was born in Boston into a family with a number of attorneys, doctors and educators. She graduated from Swampscott High School in Swampscott, Massachusetts, in 1987, and Smith College in 1992. She is a self-described WASP, with a paternal grandfather who was Russian-Jewish.