Marlene Samuels is a writer, independent research sociologist, and instructor. She earned her Ph.D. and M.A. degrees in Sociology from University of Chicago and has a B.S. in clinical and educational psychology. She serves on University of Chicago's Visiting Committee to the Graduate Division in the Social Sciences and is a member of University of Chicago Women'sBoard.Her academic and professional training as a psychologist, researcher and sociologist is reflected in her current writing. Marlene writes creative non-fiction, short stories, essays, and sociological pieces that draw from her background as the daughter of Holocaust survivors and from her personal experiences as an immigrant. Marlene's sociological work focuses upon problems in contemporary America such as the changing American family, adoption's role in creating families, and midlife regrets and subsequent decision-making strategies.Marlene conducts writing workshops on research methods for writers - a topic she believes is overlooked too often although critical to establishing and maintaining the writer's credibility.She co-authored and edited her mother's Holocaust memoir, The Seamstress: A Memoir of Survival, (Penguin-Berkley Press), plus an academic book about professional schools' prestige levels and their graduates' long-term success (University of Michigan Press). Marlene's most recent book - When Digital Isn't Real: Fact Finding Offline for Serious Writers, (Create Space 2013) is available online as well as on Kindle.Her essays and short stories have been published widely including in Lilith Magazine, The Chicago Tribune, Ready-Made Magazine, University of Iowa Summer Writing Anthology,Story Circle Anthology, LA Review, and others. Marlene writes a blog, has written guest posts on a number of writers' blogs, and participated in the collaborative interview project, Writer To Writer, on behalf of A Room ofHer Own Foundation (AROHO). Marlene participates in AROHO's Ghost Ranch Retreat in Abiquiú, New Mexico where she offers individual research consultations to writers and has presented workshops. She serves on the board of Story CircleNetwork and presents at their national conferences in Austin, Texas.