Hey there, and welcome to my site. I’m a writer, singer, songwriter, actor and podcaster based in Detroit. I love dogs, chocolate, theatre, music, sunny days that are not too hot and movies. I do not like cilantro, housework, getting lost (which I do all the time) and math.

My Writing

My full-length play, The Bucket List of Booze Club, is spreading organically, to my surprise and delight. To date, it has been performed in multiple locations in Michigan as well as in Minneapolis. Women who see this play done by one theatre group take it to another, either because they want to direct it or be in it. The four central characters are women in their 50s who are grappling with all that entails. Both men and women have reacted strongly and emotionally to it. I (almost) hate to say it, but seeing people cry at a play I’ve written is strangely gratifying. The BLoBC delivers a lot laughs, too.

Another full-length, female-centric play, Cora Lynn Beauty Can Change Your Life, won the Community Theatre Association of Michigan 2024 Playwright Award. It was also chosen for the Michigan Playwrights Festival in 2024. Antares Awaits, a comedy about the perils of internet fame, was chosen for the staged reading series at Planet Ant in Hamtramck, Michigan.

Community Service, a play for middle- and high school-age actors, is available from YouthPLAYS. A children’s musical co-written with Tim Chanko entitled Deanna’s Doggie Daycare is awaiting its first production.

I’ve written – and won awards for – numerous one-act plays. Click here for more information about them. Click here to learn about Twelve Short Plays That You Can do For Free and Monologues for Actors (that directors aren’t sick of hearing).

Fiction: Palm Tree Pipe Dreams is a comic novel set in L.A. It follows the adventures and misadventures of an aspiring screenwriter who can’t catch a break – until he finds himself coping in unexpected ways with Southern California’s new reality.

Nonfiction: You know all those stereotypes you’ve heard about spinsters and old maids? The New Old Maid will squash them like a bug. The unmarried women who share their stories in the book lead interesting, vibrant, gratifying lives.

My Music

My sister Tina and I founded a pop-rock band called McLaughlin’s Alley. I write songs, sing and play flute and bass the band. The website is: www.mclaughlinsalley.com. You can hear our songs (and see clips from our TV appearances) on YouTube. Our songs are available on CD Baby.

My Podcast: Write Like a Badass

I am so excited to have launched this podcast, because it brings together my love of writing and my love of interviewing people, which I got to do during my many years of being a morning radio personality. Write Like a Badass is available on all major podcast platforms. Check it out! More information about it is available at http://www.writelikeabadass.com, and on Facebook (@writelikeabad—), Instagram (@badasswriter) and Tiktok (@badasswriter). If you’re interested in being a guest on the pod, email me at: howtowritelikeabadass@gmail.com.

Contact Me

You can email me at: maureenparaventi@gmail.com.