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About
Mary Warner It's author bio time! This was going to be the only page on my website where I wrote in first-person, because if there's anything that feels stranger than writing an author bio, it's writing about one's self in third person. Instead, I've decided to write all the pages in first-person for a more personal feel. So, then? What do you want to know about me? I've found that the easiest way to answer this question is to imagine what I want to know about the writers I'm fond of. I typically like to know the basic facts about people because it puts them into context. I was born and raised in Minnesota and still live in the state. My parents divorced when I was eleven. I have four siblings, three brothers and a sister. I am happily married to a handsome, intelligent, humorous (keep going with the positive superlatives) man and have three of the best children anyone could ever ask for in this world. (That doesn't preclude you from having your own best children in the world.) We have three cats in our house and all are very much a part of the family. (One is sleeping by my keyboard as I write this.) I come from a family filled with artists and, as I later discovered, writers. My grandpa on my father's side was a landscape painter, creating over 300 large works over the course of his 95 years. When he passed away, found among his posessions were several short stories that he had written. While my father isn't artistic in any way that I know of, he does have a scientific mind. My mother is gifted with a talent for fiber arts, particularly crocheting and embroidery. There are several artists within her side of the family. Her grandfather - my great-grandfather - had quite a way with words and wrote no-nonsense business letters. Three of my four siblings are involved with artistic pursuits. My older brother is a photographer, my younger brother is good at drawing, but prefers to pursue music, and my sister tries her hand at all sorts of craft projects as a form of relaxation. My half-brother, who is considerably younger than the rest of us, enjoys demolition, which is as much a part of the creative process as construction. With this artistic background and my own passion for art, I grew up thinking I'd be an artist, not a writer. I got a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from St. Cloud State University. My concentration was in weaving at a time when weaving was dying as an art form at the college. Upon the heels of graduating college, I gave birth to Eldest Son. Fifteen months later, Daughter was born. Within two more years, Young Son #2 came along. Talking from experience, it's difficult, if not practically impossible, to dress a loom with small children and cats in the house. I taught myself sewing and embroidery (and eventually knitting, applique, and beading) in order to have easy-to-drop creative pursuits. Mixed within the early years of raising children, I ran a neon sign shop with my husband and held various part-time jobs. Eventually, I took a job with a museum and have held this job since that time. While I had had earlier inklings of an aptitude for writing, I never considered writing something I could do as a living, until my museum job. I wrote constantly for work, and still do. History articles, brochures, procedures manuals, tour guides, education pieces, books, press releases, etc. It wasn't until I co-authored my first book with my co-workers that I considered myself to be a writer. If I recall correctly, it was probably at the point when the book came back from the printer. The beauty of writing for me is the fact that I can create something with words much more quickly than I can in fiber, which, of course, is why it's more practical for me to be a writer than an artist. While the bulk of my creative energy is now focused on writing, I won't ever permanently give up fiber or visual arts. Sometimes I've just got to make something using textural or visual language and it won't translate properly into words. Mary Warner March 16, 2009 ---------------- Writing allows me to explore a variety of topics, with the following being of especial interest: The intersection of science and metaphysics Intellectual property rights Family Entropy Nonprofit management Music The Arts, specifically fiber arts Creativity Birds Extinction Technology Children's issues History Museum topics Small observations of character Social outcasts / underdogs Medicine, particularly complementary healing methods |
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