Jacqui Nelson’s North of the Border with guest Marion Ann Berry

Who’s next on my North of the Border guest blog series? Today we have Marion Ann Berry, author Behind the Kitchen Doors!

Where does Marion Ann get her inspiration? How is Canada part of her inspiration? Read on and see...

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I was born and raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I am an east coaster at heart. I am also an only child which I contribute to my overactive imagination. If my friends and I couldn’t get together I would create stories to keep me company. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t making up stories to keep me entertained. I knew I wanted to write and one day I would share my stories.

When I was growing up in the late 1980s my source of social entertainment and information was CBC. Much Music and Video Hits introduced me to one of my favorite Canadian singer/songwriters, Sarah McLachlan. Also, from Halifax, I was in awe of Sarah. Her debut album, Touch, struck a cord within me. Here was a woman from the same place I was from and she was living her dreams. She was doing what she was meant to be doing. Making music to share with us. Her music was and still provides me with comfort and a sense of connection to mind, body and spirit.

As I ventured off to Lake Louise, Alberta, to work for a luxury hotel chain in the Canadian Rockies, Sarah was with me. Listening to Elsewhere while staring at the Victoria Glacier on Lefroy Mountain was inspirational. I knew that being in the mountains was no accident. I loved living by the ocean, but there was something magical about the mountains that I was exploring. During the summers I would hike as often as I could and when the snow fell, I would change my hiking boots for cross-country skies and glide along the freshly fallen snow. I loved being outside in nature. When my family lived in Ontario, we would visit my grandparents' farm as often as possible. I remember my family and I snowmobiling from my dad’s childhood farmhouse to the Lake nearby and having a snowy lunch picnic by a fire pit. Hot chocolate, marshmallows and lightly falling snow into my Thermos cup make for great memories.


I knew I would write about my time in the Canadian Rockies, but I wasn’t sure what I would write about. As I moved from one hotel to another, I started to recognize my talents as a hotelier and knew that I wanted to share my experiences about working in hotels, but not just the “business” side, but what it was like to be an employee.

Like a songwriter, I am writing about experiences that people can relate to. Sarah McLachlan songs are about love, breaking up, being a mother, friend and lover. Like Sarah, my stories are about life experiences in the hotel world and everything in-between. Try serving an anniversary dinner to a couple when you are going through a break-up and your ex is serving in the next section. It wasn’t easy, but I kept my permanent, fake-it-until-I-make smile on through the whole experience. Like songwriting, writing a novel is connected to creativity, as the ocean and mountains are connected to one another.

GIVEAWAY

Interested in finding out what is BEHIND THE KITCHEN DOORS at a luxury hotel in the heart of the Canadian Rockies? You could win an e-copy of my debut memoir to find out.

I will be randomly drawing a name of one person who has shared below who their favourite Canadian Singer-Songwriter/Artist is and why. The random draw will be sometime in the morning of Sunday, March 31, 2019.

I would love to connect with you and I’m really easy to connect with. You can follow me on Amazon, Goodreads and Instagram. For news on my next book and recipes (because when I’m not writing, I’m cooking) please sign up for my Newsletter for more adventures in the hotel life.

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Marion Ann

Find Behind The Kitchen Doors on Amazon US | Amazon CA | Goodreads | BookBub

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BEHIND THE KITCHEN DOORS

If you liked, Kitchen Confidential and The Grand Budapest Hotel, you will enjoy this eye-opening life experience of one employee's journey of working for a luxury hotel in the heart of the Canadian Rockies.

When Marion Ann step on the plane for Alberta to work for a luxury hotel in the heart of the Canadian Rockies, she never thought her life would change. Sure, her first job was in the food service industry at McDonald’s, but the Golden Arches had nothing on the Chateau Lake Louise. A mountain resort where employees came to either experience a good time away from home, or to hide from secrets. Marion Ann was living both lives. She needed some time to heal from a broken love triangle and the secret of her not being the shy little girl she had been labeled for most of her youth.

When she was faced with a platter of cocaine during her first few weeks of working at the resort, she knew life wasn’t going to be the same.

Intimate and truthful, Behind The Kitchen Doors is a coming of age for one employee who found out that working atop of a beautiful mountain came with a price.

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Marion Ann Berry was born and raised in Nova Scotia, but one summer she ventured to Alberta to work for a luxury hotel in the heart of the Canadian Rockies. That first summer sparked the love of hospitality within Marion Ann. Through her experiences, her first memoir about the hotel world emerged. She continues to welcome visitors from all over the world at a hotel she calls home.

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~ All pictures (except for the 1st) are supplied by today’s guest with their assurance of usage rights.