Maria Pianelli

My name is Maria and I'm a city girl at heart. Born and raised in Staten Island, I now spend the majority of my time in Manhattan, where I work at LaunchSquad, a spiffy PR agency that specializes in digital technology. I'm a recent graduate of SUNY New Paltz where I received degree in Journalism with a concentration in Public Relations and graduated a year early.

I previously interned at the New Paltz Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Staten Island Advance and the New Paltz Times. When it comes down to it, I'm a big, old nerd.

Secretly, I like to pretend I live in the '70s and I'm pretty pretentious when it comes to books and music. It's a life-long goal of mine to read all "the classics" and I pride myself on listening to unsigned bands. I'm a lover of farmers markets, sun showers, sea breeze and nights spent under the stars. Above all, I'm a sucker for adventure and I have a hard time sitting still.

Writing is my passion and I'm currently working on my first novel... when I'm not commuting...or sleeping.