The blog, Work From Home Momma, features an interview about my experiences in home businesses over the past 40 years, including my quilting one, Mea’s Quilts, operated during the Bicentennial Years.  This interview, by Laura Spencer,  is the first in her Work at Home Interview Series about women, particularly moms.
As Laura says, “Today’s interview is with Mary Emma Allen, who began as a dressmaker [and quiltmaker] and eventually transitioned to the writing and blogging business.”
This was an enjoyable experience, and I feel honored that Laura selected me to begin her series.

It was exciting to see Yvonne Russell’s article, The Web – Your Partner in Promotion, at Grow Your Writing Business and discover it included an interview of me and one of the other blogs I write for b5media.
                          (Mary Emma)
Since many quilters are writers, or at least contribute patterns and information for books, so you may find the advice  Yvonne offers on her blog of great interest.  Her general advice also applies to businesses, which would include those offering quilts, fabric art, fabrics and other supplies. 
Much of what Yvonne offers here concerns promotion via the Internet and blogs.  She and I discussed this topic …read more

Last year, second graders from a New York School invited several author/illustrators to contribute an illustration for a quilt block.   The youngsters were studying about children’s authors and reading their books.
Although my children’s stories have been published mainly in magazines and I’m a writer more than illustrator, I did sketch the illustrations for an anthology, Tales of Adventure and Discovery, which consists of several of my stories.
“Would your students like one of my illustrations?” I inquired.
“Definitely,” their teacher e-mailed me.  Then one of the students sent me a piece of fabric, cut to the desired size.  I was simply to illustrate with …read more