Marlene Dotterer

About me:

The blog on MySpace is a place to showcase my writing. It will help me keep track of my projects and give the world a chance to see what's going on! If the world is interested, of course.

I have other "busy" blogs at:

http://mardott.livejournal.com/ (a personal-and-writing blog)

http://mealsbymarlene.blogspot.com/ (a blog about food)

I am more than one person, which I guess is typical of a Gemini. I'm a Personal Chef with a geology degree and a life-long love of science fiction and the possibilities that genre gives us for our future.

I have started writing my own stories to add my 2 cents to the vision of the future. I'm not published yet, but my first novel is searching for an agent at this time. A common theme in my writing is ecology: the myriad interrelationships that exist on our planet and in the universe. Nothing exists that does not effect something else and I am constantly drawn to explore these effects within a fictional setting.

About my chef business:

Through all my incarnations, has been a love of food! From earliest childhood, when my brothers and I would “help” our Italian father make ravioli, I’ve been fascinated by the act of preparing a meal. I’ve inherited the Italian enjoyment of mealtime, with family and friends gathered around, sharing good food and good wine.

I have learned how food connects us to each other and to our planet and the seasons, and to understand how food can give us a sense of “place” and belonging. This is the magic that keeps pulling me back to the kitchen.

Even as a young mother, I was determined to prepare my children’s food from scratch, using the best ingredients I could afford. I would sit at the table with my cookbooks spread around me, planning a bi-weekly menu and listing ingredients I needed to purchase. For me, this was an act of love, as I imagined my children’s reactions to a joyfully prepared meal. I still love to place a table full of delicious, fresh, and healthy food in front of people and watch the fun!

About my writing:

“You never finish anything!”

I first heard those words forty years ago from my frustrated step-father. Since then, I've finished many things and have happily discovered that finishing is not the problem - it’s that I carry a constant yearning to see what else there is to do.

I've tried on hats for musician, gymnast, bookkeeper, teacher, scientist, science fiction fan, star-gazer, chef, author, wife, mother, and grandmother. Every role has brought enjoyment and learning, and occasionally, a paycheck.

“Author” is my most recent hat and has resulted in an outpouring of the bottled-up stories that have been skittering around in my mind for years.

My step-father would be pleased to know I do finish my novels.

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