I   I started out as a storyteller. For years, I would turn the near tragedies and ups and downs of our lives into our family's comedy hour. I can't say I didn't love the pull from the audience and the rewarding response. As folks would listen they encouraged me to write down the old stories.  I never dreamed that in my sixties I would learn to write my thoughts and weave them into tales that might be read by strangers. I was born during the depression in upstate Albany, New York to Italian immigrant parents. At times, I encountered difficult pathways from my hot-blooded upbringing with an authoritarian, manic-depressive, father, who had one foot in Italy and one in America. Childhood tribulations chewed directly into my spirit; the residue was, at times, overpowering.   My memoir, Marriage, Kidneys, and Other Dark Organs, reveals, I hope, with sadness and wit, my tricky path to maturity. I spent long years in search of answers to my fears, using humor to cover difficult times; it took years to take responsibility for my own life; years to allay the anger in having to forfeit my childhood as the family referee; years before I understood my parents and could replace bitterness with forgiveness; years to find the love in all this disorder; years to recognize that the legacy that made me a peacemaker was not always a benefit. Peace at any price. Woven amidst my long-term marriage and two great daughters are a number of diverse work experiences, which added much to my ‘school of hard knocks’ education. Getting maturity was the best thing for this ole gal! I started writing after I retired from the different forms of insanity and have never regretted a moment. I'm now writing my third novel, working on a children’s ghost tale and other stories - so stay with me! Venera

Venera Di Bella Barles is a writer living on Bainbridge Island, Washington and an active member of the writing community. She has completed three books,one of which is her memoir, Marriage, Kidneys, and Other Dark Organs.

Her latest book, They Was Holdin' Hands, is a psychological mystery about the suicide deaths of three elderly spinster, sisters, living in a remote mining town of Pennsylvania.

She recently won a first place award for her short story "Vivaldi and the Seasonings".

Look for her work on various sites on the web.
Venera has an untiring dedication to help stimulate emotional stability and growth in people.
She is encouraged by the authors and writers in her prolific writing group.