ROSEMARY POTTER

About Rosemary

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I grew up on the south side of Milwaukee, Wisconsin near Adams Field. Mom never liked our small, red brick house because it didn’t have a dining room and she couldn’t invite people over for dinner.  She couldn’t see, so she couldn’t cook. Dad worked a lot and wasn’t home much, so I doubt we’d have had dinner parties. The story of my family is the basis for my first novel, Now I See.

 

Being an only child is odd. I I spent a lot of time alone or with adults learning to converse, show interest, ask questions and be gracious like an adult.   It forced the shyness right out of me. I would invent games to keep myself occupied. Millie, Cecilia’s invisible friend and her inner voice, grew out of this.  Cecilia needs to talk to someone. She has so many pent-up feelings about her Mom and Dad and Millie helps sort them out.

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My real adventures as a young adult living and working in Italy serve as a springboard for my next almost completed novel, Now I’m Seen.  Being an only child also meant missing those valuable sibling lessons like how to fight for your stuff like clothes, toys, towels, shoes, chores and even food becomes second nature.  I learned this lesson the hard way when I joined the theatre company in Italy.

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An only child finds a plate full of hot, delicious food placed before them at mealtimes with a second helping right around the corner. In Italy, at my first meal with my fellow actors, I sat politely while everyone else raced to load up their plates.  By the time, I’d figured out the rules, the serving plates were empty. One of my colleagues took pity and shared his pasta with me.

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The next day, I was ready to enter battle with my speedy fingers. Although I was sloppy, spilling food and bumping other plates, I was never going to be left behind on the food front again.

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Living and working in Italy as a young adult was a transformational experience. Learning another language and making friends in a foreign culture opened my eyes to a whole new way of looking at the world.  Until I lived on foreign soil, I didn’t understand what being an American meant to me. American assumptions and an American mindset don’t fit everywhere. I swear it’s made me more of a creative problem solver.

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Please come back again. I’m sure we share a lot in common. Let’s stay in touch.

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Rosemary