About

Laura K. Lawless

¡Hola!  I’m Laura K. Lawless, creator, writer, editor, and CLO (Chief Lawless Officer) of this free online Spanish learning site. If this is your first visit, take a look at Welcome to Lawless Spanish.

Life Story

Born and raised in Illinois, I happily escaped to California at the age of 20. I spent 2½ years going to school and working in Monterey and another 3½ working, going to school, and goofing off in San José. I lived in Morocco for two and a half years, then spent four years in Pennsylvania, nine months in Costa Rica, and five years in the South of France, before finally settling in Guadeloupe.

Interests

Language is the great love of my life, and computers are in my blood, so the two together are a match made in heaven. I also love traveling, trying new restaurants, cooking, and especially reading. I’m not a big sports person, but I enjoy kayaking, snorkeling, swimming, biking, and dancing.

Education

After graduating from high school, I started attending Knox College, but transferred to Monterey Institute of International Studies after two years, where I received a BA in International Studies, and then completed the first year of MIIS’ translation and interpretation MA program. I later spent a year studying French linguistics and literature at San José State University.

Professional Experience

I started studying French in 1987 and Spanish two years later. I’ve traveled to Spain several times, as well as Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, and Nicaragua. I worked as a freelance translator for several years and taught Spanish and French at an adult education center for over a year. I’ve been a virtual Spanish teacher since 2001. I speak – and therefore teach mainly – European Spanish (as opposed to Latin American Spanish) on this site. However, on my co-branded site Progress with Lawless Spanish, you can choose which variety you’d like to learn.

Skills

I speak conversational Spanish and Italian, fluent French, survival Greek, and a smattering of Darija (Moroccan Arabic). I’m an eagle-eyed proofreader (except when it comes to my own work) and have a knack for transforming complicated concepts into accessible articles.

Other Information

I love language, and I love being able to share it via this wonderful tool: the internet. I’m truly delighted to have the opportunity to share my knowledge of and love for the Spanish language with you. My only goal is to create a comprehensive Spanish language resource for students and teachers.

I've been teaching Spanish online since 2001, and also have sites for French, English, and Italian, as well as The Veggie Table (plant-based recipes and ideology). I also do some freelance work as a translator (Spanish –» English and French –» English), proofreader, and webmaster.

I have written 3 Spanish books and 5 French books.

If you have questions, comments, or suggestions about this site, please visit my page of Frequently Asked Questions.

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Blast from the past

I originally launched this site as All Info About Spanish Language in 2001. I changed the name to e Learn Spanish Language in 2006 and then – definitively – to Lawless Spanish in 2017.

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