Maria holds an undergraduate degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a law degree from The George Washington University. Maria has worked in marketing and management consulting, and has worked for years as a freelance foreign-language translator in the areas of consumer finance and marketing. She currently practices banking and corporate law and has self-published several fiction and nonfiction books. Maria has spoken to author groups on the business of self-publishing and has written on how authors can set up their online stores.

Maria is active in local financial independence groups such as ChooseFI, and is passionate about helping people build passive income streams through book publishing and other side hustles, so that they can enjoy life and do the work they love.

Maria is an expert in personal investing, self-publishing, and travel.