Dorothy Sasso

Freelance Writer

Huntingdon Valley, PA

Freelance writer, editor, proofreader and researcher. I am an Arts & Entertainment, Lifestyle and Health & Wellness writer. I write book reviews, event previews, personal essays and features. I am experienced in conducting interviews and covering events. I'm a pop culture junkie always on the hunt for new books to read and TV shows to obsess over. You can find my book reviews at www.dorothysasso.com and learn more about my novel in progress at www.maybebabyclub.com.

Dorothy Sasso

Freelance Writer

Huntingdon Valley, PA

AGING: How I’m Living the Good Life While Getting Older
On my 37th birthday in July, I took a Zumba class taught by a good friend, who dedicated a song to me that I particularly love. After the class, all the Zumba ladies, as they’re affectionately known, gathered around me in the locker room. These women range in age from late 50s to 70s. Many of them have grown children or grandchildren.
HEALTH: Reflecting On My Journey of Breastfeeding My Daughters
When I finally got pregnant with my oldest daughter, I was determined to breastfeed. Nothing about her conception had been easy and there were certain things I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to do, like breastfeed. My mother had breastfed my siblings and I for a year each, so I grew up knowing that I wanted to do the same someday.
Education: Getting Ready for a New School Year with Toddlers
I left teaching to raise my children at the end of the 2014 school year. Even after four years, it still feels weird heading into September with no lessons to plan, supplies to purchase or classrooms to set up. Instead, I’m looking ahead to the new school year as a parent. This year, both of my daughters will be in nursery school.
Well-Being: How I Stay Productive Working From Home
“I don’t know how you do it.”. This is something I hear a lot from various mom friends. As a freelance writer and aspiring novelist, I work from home. But only during naptime. This presents an interesting problem. How much can I really get done in a window of 1-2 hours, while still maintaining a house that is sort of in order, doing laundry and cooking dinner?
HUMAN RIGHTS: Going Green Helps the Environment & Your Wallet
I’ve been following the recent news about plastic straw bans, applauding companies like McDonald’s and Starbucks for promising to phase out single-use straws. I have long been passionate about taking steps to protect the environment, so bans on single-use items like straws and plastic bags always draw my interest.
FITNESS: Recovering From an Injury – Accept the Changes
Recently, my car was rear-ended. My kids were fine, fortunately, but my car ended up with some damage and I suffered from whiplash. As soon as I drove home from the accident, I started to feel tension and pain in my shoulders and back. The doctor’s advice was easy: take two Motrin three times a day for five days, after a couple of days, use heat and then start gentle neck stretches.
FAMILY: Deciphering Second Child Syndrome for Parents
To grow or not to grow?
She's It
Shes It
HEALTH: Research the best birthing method for you
To induce or not to induce?
She's It
Shes It
HEALTH: Nature Deficit Disorder – Getting Our Fix of the Great Outdoors
Spring has finally arrived, but this March has gone both in and out like a lion, knocking out the power and trapping people indoors for days at a time. We might not realize it, but all this inside time may be having drastic effects of our children—and ourselves. In 2005, journalist Richard Louv published a book called “Last Child in the Woods,” in which he coined the phrase “nature deficit disorder.”.
Shes It
FAMILY: Parenting in the Age of Pinterest & Social Media
If you don’t have young kids, you might not be aware that St. Patrick’s Day has become a THING. What do you mean, you might be thinking? Wasn’t it always a thing? Think back to can you buy lasix over the counter. What happened on St. Did you pull out a green shirt? Maybe wear a shamrock pin? Dye some food green?
Shes It
HEALTH: Reflecting on My Year-long Healthy, Wellthy Journey
Looking Back to Look Ahead A year ago, I was reeling from seeing pictures from my daughter’s first birthday photo shoot. I barely recognized myself. My face was puffy and my clothes were tight—I was far from a picture of health. Over the last year, I have worked... Summertime Fun Do you remember being a kid where the summer stretched out long before you?
Shes It
FAMILY: Summertime Struggles – Keeping Kids Entertained
Do you remember being a kid where the summer stretched out long before you? Every day was more glorious than the last. You played outside all day, went to camp, swam and rode your bike everywhere. Dinners were grilled and you got to stay up past your bedtime, playing outside until the sun set. Those were the days.
Shes It
FAMILY: The Woes and Wins of Parenting a “Threenager”
“It’s like a switch gets turned on and your sweet two year old morphs into a terror. Three is horrible!”. My sister-in-law said something to the effect of these words when I was complaining about the challenges I was facing with my 2.5 year old. Our children are just under 9 months apart, which means that I get previews of everything that lies ahead of me as a parent from the good to the bad to the ugly.
Shes It
INSPIRATION: Stepping into the Limelight with Amy Poeppel
Growing up, my most treasured dream was to see a book with my name on it on a shelf at Barnes & Noble. I wrote constantly throughout middle and high school. In college, I majored in writing, with the hopes of turning my written ramblings into something coherent that people would actually want to read.
Shes It
FAMILY: Choosing to Stay Home with the Kids… For Now
Two of my close friends are currently preparing to end their maternity leaves. For the last three or four months, they have been home with their newborns, recovering from giving birth and learning how to be a parent. But now, their back-to-work dates are quickly approaching. Having not yet returned to work myself, I’m always curious about how parents are feeling about reentering the workforce.
Shes It
Education: Taking a Look at the State of Education in America
Even since before I had children, I was interested in play. I did a lot of reading on how important play is to a child’s development and how children need time to play independently. It has always been important to me to allow unstructured time for my children to explore their surroundings and avoid over-scheduling them in a million activities.
Shes It

About

Dorothy Sasso

Writing

Proofreading

Editing

Research

I have been telling stories my whole life. I was a highly imaginative child who was endlessly inventing creative games.

I started writing short stories very early on, and eventually worked up to starting my first novel in high school. While the book itself was highly derivative of the fantasy novels I had been reading at the time, my submission of the work in progress led to my placement in an advanced freshman writing class at Loyola University Maryland. At Loyola, I pursued a writing and history degree, which I earned in 2003.

My first job was as an editorial assistant at "Soap Opera Digest." Initially, At the magazine, I worked my way up to being the co-editor for "The Young and the Restless" and eventually "Guiding Light".

During my time at "Soap Opera Digest", I earned a Masters of Science in Adolescent Education (Grades 7-12). Afterwards, I spent 8 years as a history teacher, but never gave up my love of writing.

I introduced a major research term paper into the 8th grade curriculum, as well as regular essays, which helped to hone my proofreading and editing skills. I also put together my own sourcebooks to use in place of textbooks, which were compiled from a variety of sources. This included a writing guide. Additionally, I helped to streamline a writing curriculum for the middle school History, English, and Science classes.

In 2014, I left teaching to raise my daughter. I had kept a book review blog from 2011-2014, which drew the attention of the Arts and Entertainment editor for the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader. She brought me on as the paper's weekly book reviewer. Over time, my responsibilities evolved to include a weekly events preview for Philadelphia and New York, as well as a monthly Local Author Spotlight.

My work at the Times Leader included interviews, transcriptions, event previews and features on a variety of subjects.

I have also written for The Weekender, a weekly publication that is part of the Times Leader, Geekadelphia, FitPregnancy.com, TalkingFertility.com and TVRecappersDelight.com.

Currently, I write for She's It, a Lifestyle Technology website for women and for Geekadelphia, "Philly's premier geek blog, primarily covering passionate topics such as film, comics, literature, video games and technology with a local focus."

I am also working on a novel, The Maybe Baby Club. Visit https://www.maybebabyclub.com/ to learn more.

I look forward to taking on more freelance opportunities in writing, research, proofreading and editing.