When she was nineteen, Marianne met John Curley and married him a few months later. The couple moved to Coffs Harbour and had three children. In 1991, Curley took courses at the local TAFE college and got a certificate in word processing. In the same year, she also got a certificate in teaching from Sydney Open College. Between 1991 and 1997, she worked several part-time jobs as a teacher.