Marlene Bateman Sullivan

I was born in Salt Lake City, Utah and grew up in Sandy, Utah. After attending Dixie College and Utah State University, I graduated from the University of Utah with a Bachelor's degree in English. I married Kelly R. Sullivan and have seven children. My hobbies are gardening, camping, and reading. I have always loved to write. I started writing stories in elementary school and with the acclaim of doting parents, continued. I was blessed with a supportive teacher in junior high school, who encouraged me, so I kept on writing. My dream of writing was put aside for a time when I married and had children, which kept me very busy. As the babies got older, I managed to carve out a little time, and began writing for magazines and newspapers. Then I began working full-time after opening my own floral shop. After nine years, a health scare convinced me to sell my shop and pursue my dream of writing full time. Many thanks to a husband who was willing to support me in my writing habit. I then began writing non-fiction books. Since I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have concentrated on writing for members of that church. All of my non-fiction are collections of inspiring experiences from people in early church history. I loved doing research and digging to find fascinating stories. All of these books testify that God loves us and is always there for us. My first book was Latter-day Saint Heroes and Heroines, a collection of stories about people who stood up for their beliefs and risked their life in defense of the gospel. These are stirring, true experiences that touched my heart. I love all of these stories--they are so inspiring and faith-promoting. All of these experiences have been carefully researched and are fully documented. My next three books are about angels and are compilations of true stories in the lives of Latter-day Saints who either saw or heard an angel. The first book in this series is, And There Were Angels Among Them. The second book in this series is called Visits From Beyond the Veil and the third is, By the Ministering of Angels. Researching and writing these books was a marvelous experience. It made me realize how much Heavenly Father truly loves us and that He is very aware of us and our lives. My next book is Brigham's Boys. It tells the story of sixteen men who worked closely with Brigham Young and helped him bring the Saints across the plains and colonize the Great Basin area. The men who worked alongside Brigham were devout and always willing to serve, no matter how difficult the challenge. I had always wanted to try writing fiction, but didn't feel I was a good enough writer. Then it dawned on me that non-fiction writers were just as talented as fiction writers, and I began a mystery novel. It took me three years, but I finished Light on Fire Island, and was sooooo happy when it became a best-seller. Light on Fire Island is set in 1921, on Fire Island, New York. I suppose it's the researcher in me that made me decide to have the settings for this and all subsequent novels totally accurate. To do research on the setting for this book, my husband and I traveled to Fire Island, which is just south of Long Island. I snapped lots of pictures, talked with people at the lighthouse, and took many notes. I also corresponded with the people who are in charge of the Fire Island Lighthouse and they graciously answered my many questions. All of the details about the setting are accurate, from the number of steps in the lighthouse, to street names, to the names of plants and trees. I then returned to non-fiction and wrote Heroes of Faith. This is a collection of stories from early church history about people who have been super-valiant in the gospel. They had amazing faith and are true heroes. My next book was a novel, a murder mystery called Motive for Murder. This began a series featuring Erica Coleman, a quirky private eye with OCD. Although her OCD sometimes makes family and friends want to strangle her, it helps her pick up on clues that others miss. I won't include the synopsis here, but click on the book in Amazon and read all about it. It's a fun and entertaining mystery. My latest non-fiction book is Gaze Into Heaven; Near-death experiences in early church history. I love reading near death experiences and had no idea, until I began researching, that there were so many back in the early days of the church. It's fascinating the read what people saw when they died and went to the spirit world. People often ask me where I found all these stories. I did most of my research at the LDS Church Archives and the Church History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. I also did a lot of research at the libraries at BYU and also at the library at Utah State University. In addition, I researched materials at the University of Utah and other public libraries. Most of the experiences in these books were gleaned from personal histories, letters, and various records and documents, along with newspapers and magazines such as the Elder's Journal, Times and Seasons, The Millennial Star, Young Woman's Journal, and many others. My latest book is A Death in the Family, which is the second book in the Erica Coleman series. Quirky Erica once more becomes embroiled in solving a murder, this time her husband's grandmother. Dealing with family is trying, and then the murderer targets Erica, who has to find out whodunit before she becomes the next victim. I'm proud that A Death in the Family made the top ten bestseller list at Seagull Book. I work very hard on my writing, for many reasons. First of all, it is simply what I do. I can't imagine not writing. With my non-fiction, I want to inspire people and build their faith and testimonies. With my novels, I want people who ready my books to be entertained and not have to worry about questionable scenes, swearing or things like that. As an LDS author, I feel a great responsible to write clean, uplifting novels that carry good, underlying messages, which will enlighten and inspire and help people cope with real life.