Jane Christensen: Ghostwriter, Author & Educator
Published: October 31, 2022
From the time she was a little girl, Jane Christensen has always enjoyed reading books. Short stories were good; long novels were better, but regardless of the number of pages, books have held a special place in her heart and on her shelves.
In 1956, Jane graduated from Colorado College with a Bachelor of Arts in English and then went on to earn a Master of Humanities degree from The University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Once she finished her degree programs, she immediately set her sights on creating a path for her career.
“I just loved it. All of it,” Jane, a current resident in The Glen at Lake Oconee Village in Greensboro, Georgia, said. “Reading led to writing and writing led to many open doors.”
As it so happened, a ghostwriting job opened and Jane started writing materials for publications and books – all under the name of others.
And in 1967, Jane made a move and started working on The Bonnie Prudden Show, a Canadian talk show and exercise television series which aired on CBC Television from 1965 to 1968. The show’s namesake, Bonnie Prudden, was an American physical fitness pioneer, rock climber and mountaineer.
It was Jane’s job to transform into Bonnie Prudden, or at least on paper. Jane was tasked to respond to all the mail as if she was Bonnie Prudden, and Jane also ghost wrote fitness books for Bonnie.
As the 1970s made their debut, Jane had become a famously anonymous writer. But something was missing, and it wasn’t her name as the byline: It was passion.
Although she enjoyed her unique occupation as a ghostwriter, she found her true passion was teaching literature to school-aged children.
“All children have the capability to learn, but they must be excited, and it is the job of the teacher to bring this excitement into the classroom,” she said. “I started practicing the art of teaching at Everitt Junior High School in Wheat Ridge, Colorado,” Jane said with a laugh.
She sought to better the education system any way she could for her students, and soon realized how out of touch some of the schoolbooks were she was using.
Jane felt most schoolbook authors hadn’t seen the inside of a public school in years or never taught in one. She decided she could not sit idly by and took it upon herself to publish her own books.
One was Patterns of Communicating, A Language Series for Grades 7-9 and another was Medallion Series of America. As she wrote, more writing jobs appeared. And before long, Jane had written for many other publications, a few more books, articles, and even had the opportunity to help create a National Collegiate Exam.
“I simply wanted to help children learn,” Jane said. “I wanted to make a difference.”
From ghostwriter to published author to teacher, Jane Christensen certainly has made a difference.
And that’s something she can put her name on.
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