Mary Lou Sanelli has earned a solid reputation in the literary and public-speaking community through a steady commitment to writing and through more than twenty years of successful public readings and presentations.

Her collections of essays, Every Little Thing and In So Many Words, have both been nominated for a Pacific Northwest Book Award and a Washington State Book Award. Her first novel, The Star Struck Dance Studio of Yucca Springs, was published in 2019, and her first children's title, Bella Likes to Try, followed in 2022. An Island Called Bainbridge: People, Places, Conversations is her newest title.

She is a columnist whose essays have appeared in newspapers and magazines throughout the region, and her commentaries have been aired on public radio, including NPR's Weekend Edition. She presents her staged reading of The Immigrant's Table throughout the country.

Sanelli also works as a dance instructor and choreographer. That training and performance experience allows her to present with skills that surpass the average author reading. She presents her work at corporate events, theaters, writing conferences and festivals, literary venues, colleges and universities, book clubs, and private events.