Margie Patlak is an award-winning science and nature writer, memoirist, and photographer. Her book More Than Meets the Eye: Exploring Nature and Loss on the Coast of Maine, published in the spring of 2021 by Down East Books/Rowman and Littlefield, was given an “Outstanding Book” award by the American Society of Journalists and Authors in the memoir category. Her personal essays have appeared in a number of literary journals and newspapers, including The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Los Angeles Times, and JuxtaProse, for which her “Rock of Ages” won First Honorable Mention in its 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest. Her flash essay "The River" was nominated for a Pushcart Prize.
Margie's photobook Wild and Wondrous: Nature’s Artistry on the Coast of Maine, will be published by Down East Books/Rowman and Littlefield in June of 2023. Her photos will also be featured in an upcoming solo exhibit at Hammond Hall in Winter Harbor, Maine in the summer of 2023, and in other upcoming exhibits at galleries and libraries in the state. Her photographs have been featured in a number of newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal and the Portland Press Herald, as well as on News Center Maine’s television show 207 and on B&W Minimalism Magazine’s Instagram site.
Earlier in her science writing career, Margie wrote over two hundred articles about the environment, neuroscience, cancer, biomedical research, and technology for popular publications such as Discover magazine, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer and many others. In addition, she has written numerous articles, brochures, webpages, and workshop summaries for the National Institutes of Health and the National Academy of Sciences.
Margie has degrees in Botany and Environmental Studies and divides her time between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Corea, Maine.