Brunette, an author with over 40 years of writing experience, loves to paint with words, crafting nostalgic stories from unique perspectives. Her inspiration stems from her family and her home, which is situated on an old dairy farm. The remnants of the past spark her creativity, as she wonders about the secrets an ancient oak tree might have witnessed or what stories young children have shared while jumping on a trampoline during the cool fall days.

Mary has five great nieces and nephews, including two girls and three boys, all under the age of five. She began writing Christmas stories for them and released her first published work The Five Crepe Myrtles in October 2023. In 2023 and 2024, her relatives’ children gathered around the five crepe myrtles to decorate them with vintage, indestructible Christmas ornaments. 

Mary plans to release her second book Gramps Can Fix in 2025.

She has also written three cookbooks that consist of tried-and-true family recipes. Researching and gathering recipes and information about some ancestors and current relatives was a labor of love.