Piper Kerman, the author of Orange is the New Black, will be in the St. Louis area for several appearances next week. She will be speaking at Lindenwood University on Tuesday, September 9 and twice at Maryville University, on Wednesday and Thursday of next week. All three of the appearances are free and open to the public.

Kerman, who is listed as an executive consultant on the show inspired by her book, recently talked with St. Louis Public Radio about her experiences both inside and outside prison. Kerman didn’t have any earth-shattering spoilers about Orange Is the New Black season 3, but she was asked if Alex Vause, played on the show by Laura Prepon, would be returning to the prison after being released earlier in the series.

“Oh, yes!” Kerman answered, quickly adding, “Well, she’s in season three and she’ll be in every episode of season three.”

Kerman also shared an interesting cheesecake recipe. Read and listen over on the St. Louis Public Radio site.

In real life, the woman named Alex Vause in Netflix’s OITNB was actually named Cleary Wolters. She recently signed a publishing deal with HarperOne to write her own memoir. That book, Out of Orange, is scheduled to be released in May 2015. Wolters had said that while she will cover her relationship with Kerman and own experiences in prison, it will also touch on the events leading her to get involved in drug trafficking in the first place.

Here’s what she told The Hollywood Reporter:

“Alex [the character] and Piper have inspired me to tell my whole story — an unbelievable saga that takes place all over the world: Africa, Europe, Asia, and the U.S. both in prison and out,” Wolters said in a statement. “I think people may be surprised at what happened to me after I turned myself in — and where my life is now.”

Considering what Wolters told Vanity Fair back in April, Out of Orange should be required reading for any Orange Is the New Black fan.

“In other words, as Wolters is clear on: the two women most certainly did not consummate a will-they-or-won’t-they narrative arc in a burst of prison-chapel passion, as the show has it. On the whole, Wolters says that the true story would be “so wretched and stinky, it would quite possibly result in a collapsed universe. So I guess it’s a good thing Piper and Jenji stick with the fun little tidbits.”

It will, of course, be a case of she-said-she-said, but either way, should be quite juicy.

Still curious about how the show compares to the book and to real life, based on what we know now? Read this extremely well-done article. Also, Buruji Kashamu, the alleged kingpin of the drug ring that Kerman was briefly involved with, has never actually faced his charges. By the most recent account, he is actually a politician in Nigeria currently. He spent five years in custody in England after being arrested in 1998, but that country refused to extradite him to the United States.

Piper Kerman is currently a communications consultant with Spitfire Strategies, where she works with “non-profits, philanthropies and other organizations working in the public interest”. You can connect with Piper Kerman on Twitter where she has the awesome Twitter handle @Piper. You can also read the original FAQ from 2004 about her prison sentence. Piper Kerman and Larry Smith, played by Jason Biggs as “Larry Bloom” on the show, are still married and have a three-year-old son.

Orange Is the New Black returns to Netflix for season three in June or July of 2015. A few other tidbits have come out about the third season, including that Lori Petty will be making an appearance. Our resident die-hard fan on staff, Jessica, made her own predictions about season three back in June.

Where and when to catch Piper Kerman around St. Louis

Tuesday, September 9

7 pm — J. Schneidegger Center for the Arts – Lindenwood University.

Part of the Lindenwood Speaker Series that will also bring Lauren Drain, Bill Rosemann, Giancarlo Esposito, Jamie Tworkowski and Kall Penn to town this school year.

Wednesday, September 10

7 pm — Maryville University Auditorium

Part of the Maryville Talks Books series co-sponsored by Left Bank Books. The series is also bringing Reza Aslan, Patricia Cornwell and Andy Cohen to town this year.

Thursday, September 11

12: 15 pm — Maryville University Auditorium

Part of the Maryville Reads program.

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