A former public relations professional, Mari Ann worked for a prominent New York City PR firm, a national nonprofit, and a boutique PR firm. All positions had one priority—secure positive unpaid media coverage for clients––despite a crowded market. After she moved to the Atlanta area, Mari Ann launched her editing and book coaching business, the Writer's High, in 2014 and now brings that same focus and dedication to authors, helping them polish manuscripts that get noticed in today’s crowded market. When her second client, a debut author, landed on the New York Times Best-Seller List, Mari Ann may have been even more ecstatic than her client!
Mari Ann's professional editorial services honor the author's voice and vision while showing how to take their manuscript to new heights. Mari Ann knows how exciting––and stressful––the publishing journey can be, and authors can feel confident knowing that all communication will be encouraging, respectful, and confidential.
In addition to her editing business, she founded the Writer’s High Retreat, an inspiring weekend retreat featuring literary luminaries such as the late Winston Groom, Patti Callahan Henry, Joshilyn Jackson, and Cassandra King Conroy. Mari Ann is also a founding coordinator for the Georgia chapter of the Editorial Freelancers Association. In this volunteer role, she helps editors learn more about the industry and sharpen their skills through numerous professional education events each year.
When she's not focused on clients, she's fostering rescued puppies with the Oconee Regional Humane Society or exploring the bucolic natural beauty of Georgia’s lake country.
A Word from Mari Ann:
As a youngster, I loved stories. I read constantly––including the dictionary while I ate breakfast each morning. I also loved listening to people share their stories. My favorites were the ones my Italian grandfather told me about working in the coal mines and my Southern grandfather's stories about...anything. He could talk about dirt––and, as a farmer, he did indeed talk about dirt––and I'd be spellbound.
In the providential way life sometimes comes together, I’m now able to focus on what I enjoy most: listening to people and helping them share their stories, and sometimes even sharing my own.
I’ve been blessed to find the writer’s high––that blissful experience when the mind, the heart, the soul, and the body work in harmony to create effortless and beautiful prose. Let me show you how to do the same.