JESS ZAFARRIS

Jess Zafarris is the author of etymology books Words from Hell (Chamber 2023), Once Upon a Word (Rockridge Press 2020) and Useless Etymology (Chambers 2025), and a content director, editor, podcaster, event programmer, audience strategist, short story writer, game maker, educator and TikTok creator with 14 years of experience crafting quality journalism and digital content across magazines, stages, news sites, social media, newsletters, audio, and beyond.

Her TikTok channel @jesszafarris (95,000 followers) taps into the wonder of word origins, and her blog, UselessEtymology.com, has been widely cited by media and scholars alike. In 2024, she launched a popular podcast called Words Unravelled with YouTuber RobWords.

She has presented at conferences including the Writer’s Digest Conference and State of Social, and she has hosted tracks and moderated keynote firesides at events including Brandweek, Social Media Week, the Future of Communications Conference, PR Daily’s Social Media Conference, and Ragan’s Internal Communications Conference.

She has been profiled in the Boston Globe, quoted in The New York Times, and interviewed on NPR, as well as appearing on dozens of podcasts including Something You Should Know and Dear Hank and John.

In Fall 2024, she will teach Magazine Media Essentials at Emerson College in for its Publishing and Writing MA program. She thrives at the whirlwind of storytelling, digital content, social media, traditional journalism and marketing, and she specializes in tapping into the wonder and curiosity that keeps readers, viewers, listeners and attendees coming back for more. Let Jess help you establish authority, drive traffic, grow your audience, boost visibility, extend your brand, and improve your storytelling.