Michelle Marine is a healthy lifestyle and family travel blogger at SimplifyLiveLove.com as well as a freelance writer and photographer. In 2020, Marine published her first book, How to Raise Chickens for Meat, with 30 farm-to-table recipes she developed and photographed. Learn about Michelle Marine…
Hometown: Sedalia, Missouri
First job: Besides babysitting, my first job was cleaning the Grandstand at the Missouri State Fair.
Favorite ways to spend your free time in IA: We love adventure. Seeing new towns, trying new food and being active outdoors. Iowa has a lot of really great places to explore, and we’re slowing visiting them! I flunked bird math so I spend a lot of time outside with my mixed flock of chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, peacocks and guineas. I also have a big garden in the summer that takes up a lot of my time.
Your biggest accomplishment and why: My biggest accomplishment so far has been publishing my book. Seeing something in print that I worked on for hours and hours was amazing. And when people reach out to me because they purchased the book, that’s the best!
The biggest obstacle you overcame: Blogging changes every day. The social media algorithms, the Google algorithms – they’re always changing. Keeping up with the changes is my biggest obstacle, and it’s something I deal with on a daily basis.
Someone who inspires you and why: Another Iowa blogger who inspires me is Jenni Ward from The Gingered Whisk. She creates beautiful recipes that encourage families to raise adventurous eaters. In a time where easy often wins, Jenni advocates for real, healthy food cooked at home. I like that.
Advice to someone pursuing a career path in what you do: Find a tribe of likeminded people and work together. Blogging can be lonely work at home without a tribe.
Favorite quote: “Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.” –Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Something someone would be surprised to learn about you: Most of my high school classmates are surprised to learn that I wrote a book on raising chickens for meat. I grew up a city girl, so taking responsibility for our food is pretty shocking to most people who knew me when I was younger.
What makes someone fabulous: I think fabulous people are authentic, funny, empathetic and inspiring. Especially in the social media sphere – people who cut through the BS and share real life struggles win in my book!