"Where stories breathe on paper." TM
GET TO KNOW JAMIE COLLINS
A Life in Words
Writing has never been optional for Jamie Collins. Like eating and breathing, it’s something integral to her existence. As an author who tells the life stories of remarkable survivors, Jamie makes it her mission to revisit a blank page until any story she writes breathes on paper. Simply put, she pens true crime memoirs that take the reader on an engaging journey. Her books are emotionally jarring, soulfully transcendent, nearly impossible to put down, and they tend to consume a reader: heart, mind, and soul. Jamie is an award-winning author who has appeared on 48 Hours and The Dr. Oz Show, with her debut book, I Am Jessica, featured on Evil Lives Here, various news stations, numerous podcasts, and in newspapers.
When she isn’t busy sprinting through the halls of a law firm as a litigation paralegal by day, spending time with her husband and teenage son by night, or penning memoirs for people in the twilight, she is focused on pondering the deepest existential questions of life, such as: “What in the heck should I cook for dinner tonight?” (If she is writing, all signs point to pizza delivery or Door Dash.)
A WRITER OF POWERFUL MEMOIRS FOR REMARKABLE SURVIVORS
Jamie is honored to write the memoirs of people who have survived the unimaginable. She has an eye for big stories and a knack for telling them boldly and unapologetically. She strives to be a human conduit by forming a close bond with her subjects to translate their life experience—and their trauma—onto the page. Her insistence on delivering an immersive experience to her readers leads to her unique writing style that is raw, real, vivid, and palpably authentic. Collins has quickly established her own lane spinning true crime memoirs that are as deeply haunting as they are powerful.
She has won eight book awards for her survivors' authentically penned memoirs in the categories of Debut Author, True Crime, Memoir/Biography, and Societal Issues.
THE LIST OF AWARDS WON
FEATHERED QUILL
BOOK AWARDS, 2024
WINNER - Memoir/Biography
I AM ABIGAIL
READER VIEWS REVIEWERS
CHOICE AWARDS, 2024
WINNER / Bronze - Societal Issues
I AM ABIGAIL
NEXT GENERATION INDIE
BOOK AWARDS, 2024
FINALIST - True Crime
I AM ABIGAIL
INTERNATIONAL BOOK
AWARDS, 2024
FINALIST - True Crime
I AM ABIGAIL
STORYTRADE BOOK
AWARDS, 2024
FINALIST - True Crime
I AM ABIGAIL
FEATHERED QUILL
BOOK AWARDS, 2020
FINALIST - Debut Author
I AM JESSICA
AMERICAN BOOK FEST
BEST BOOK AWARDS, 2019
WINNER - True Crime
I AM JESSICA
INTERNATIONAL BOOK
AWARDS, 2019
FINALIST - True Crime
I AM JESSICA
"ARMED WITH MERELY WORDS AND A SMILE,
SHE SHAKES THE WORLD."
-Jamie Collins
I AM ABIGAIL
A True Crime Memoir
Release Date: September 5, 2023
ONE OF THE MOST DISTURBING CASES OF SEXUAL ABUSE ON RECORD—AND THE WOMAN WHO SURVIVED TO SPEAK HER TRUTH
Every 68 seconds, someone in America is sexually assaulted. Every nine minutes, that victim is a child. Between the ages of nine and 24, Abigail Alvarado was sexually assaulted more than a thousand times by her sadistic uncle and adoptive father. This is her harrowing story.
ONE LITTLE GIRL. AN EVIL COUPLE.
A CAPTIVATING STORY OF SURVIVAL, HEALING, AND HOPE.
My name is Abigail Alvarado. When I was nine, Child Protective Services removed me and my siblings from my mother's home—a known crack house—due to neglect. After an extended stay at a children's shelter in San Antonio, Texas, we were adopted by our Uncle Chevo, a Sergeant in the Army, and his wife, Laura. We moved to Hawaii thinking it would be paradise. For me, it became a living hell. What followed was 16 years of harrowing abuse, brainwashing, manipulation, stalking, physical abuse, sexual assault, and the stripping away of me, as a little girl, bit by bit, until there was nothing left. Ultimately, I gave birth to three beautiful babies—each of whom was his. My children were raised to believe that I was their sister. I was raised to believe that I was nothing. My abusers were masterful manipulators who wrapped pretty lies around the ugly truth to hide their abuse. No longer bound by their lies and my shame, I am here to take my power back, page by page. I am no one's victim.
I am a survivor, unbound.
* * *
"Riveting . . . Jamie Collins captivates her readers with evocative storytelling and extraordinary skill. Through themes of trauma and triumph, Collins details the power of unconditional love and perseverant hope. This work is a testament to the healing art of storytelling—for the courageous Abigail, who was willing to divulge her lived experiences, and for Collins,
who brings her remarkable gift to the page."
-Autumn Jade Monroe
“Riveting from page one . . . an intense ride . . . a book you literally won’t be able to put down.”
-Lauren Sapala
As a child, I was known as "Jessica Pelley." When I was nine, I went to a sleepover at a friend's house for the weekend. While I was away, my entire family was murdered. I would spend the next 29 years fighting, crawling, and clawing my way through the darkness. This wasn't just a national news headline, a cold case, or a true crime show. It was my family. And my life. I was the broken little girl left behind to tell this story. I am now "Jessi," in the pages of this unapologetic memoir, set free.
I Am Jessica:
A Survivor’s Powerful Story of Healing and Hope
Jamie Collins
CONTACT
** PLEASE DIRECT ALL MEDIA INQUIRIES TO PUBLICIST, JENNIFER MUSICO: jen@jennifermusico.com **
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