Interviewing Quinn Cummings

Have you ever wondered what it would have been like growing up as a famous child star? Take Miley Cyrus for instance. Thirty years from now, will she still be remembered as the hit singing sensation and television personality Hannah Montana? Or, will her greatest life achievement to date simply be the role of a loving mother to her precious children?

This month’s Jen’s Jewels has experienced that very dilemma. Quinn Cummings lit up the big screen as a child star and continues to do so today in the eyes of her daughter and loving husband. In her new book, NOTES FROM THE UNDERWIRE Adventures from My Awkward and Lovely Life, she tackles her toughest role yet as a mom, wife, and forty-something business woman. From camps to crafts, Quinn takes us on a hilarious journey as she chronicles the adventures of her everyday life.

As part of this interview, Hyperion Books has generously donated five copies for you, my lucky readers, to win. So, don’t forget to look for the trivia question at the end. And, thanks for making Jen’s Jewels a part of your reading adventure.

Jen: My readers recognize your name as being the famous childhood actor from the movie The Goodbye Girl as well as the television series Family. Since, then, you have taken on numerous roles in life as an agent, an inventor, and even a writer. First, let’s talk about your acting career. In what ways did your entry into the business at an early age influence your decision to make an exit? What was the best part of being a childhood star? The worst?

Quinn: I loved the bit between "Action" and "Cut." I hated everything else. I didn’t like being a public figure when I just wanted to be a kid; I certainly didn’t like having to wait for someone else to give me a job doing what I loved to do. Sadly, statistically, the bit between “Action” and "Cut" was the smallest part of my life and it’s hard to keep loving something which shows up so rarely.

Jen: It came as no surprise to me (having read your book) that after the birth of your daughter Alice, you embarked on a new entrepreneurial adventure. (Your personal drive for success really shines through in your humorous anecdotes.) Please tell us about it.

Quinn: It began because I developed Carpal-Tunnel Syndrome when I was pregnant. It leaves the minute you give birth, but I ended up with some nerve- damage to my hands and wrist, which would be exacerbated by the exact bend in the wrist it took to hold my daughter on my hip. A friend of mine and I started creating a baby-carrier for older babies and toddlers which would displace the weight across your upper body and not just rely on your arm. It took us nine months to create it the perfect shape but it’s a whole new design. We have a patent and everything! You can find it at www.thehiphugger.com; it’s not my first priority any more, but we’re still selling the ones we have made.

Jen: Not only did you start your own business, but in February of 2005 you began to put your writing talents to good use in The QC Report. For those readers unfamiliar with your blog, please share with us its conception, purpose, and significance in relation to modern life.

Quinn: The blog began because I was writing to multiple friends at once, filling them in on the details of my life and I noticed I was cutting-and- pasting freely. It was starting to feel as if I was re-gifting my emails. So as not to feel re-gifty, I decided to write a single blog, tell my friends about it and let them get caught up with us as they were inclined. Two months later, a friend suggested it to Newsweek "Blog of the Week" column and they included it. It was, and I hope continues to be, a fearless examination of how I’m an idiot. I’m loathing putting the word “Significance” to any writing exercise which has included me accidentally insulting a little person. Correction; repeatedly accidentally insulting a little person.

Jen: Your latest undertaking is a hilarious account of your life experiences in NOTES FROM THE UNDERWIRE Adventures from my Awkward and Lovely Life. What was the driving force behind your decision to put your life into words?

Quinn: First of all, thank you so much for your kind words. Why do I write? Because of this equation:

PP+ 20m= PH(e)2.

That is, any Private Pride I feel about my ability to run my life, take care of my child, attend to my business or behave in a way that could be described as competent will be followed, in less than twenty minutes, by a Public Humiliation that is equal to the Private Pride squared. If I So, Quinn logic concludes, if people are going to catch me being an idiot, I might as well tell the story before they do.

Jen: I just had to laugh when I read your story about the “good soap.” As moms, everything we have is common property. Being able to claim something as our own is unheard of! In your opinion, what makes mom’s stuff so attractive?

Quinn: Oh, I wish I knew. If we could discern that special mom- pheromone, scientists could create an anti-version which mothers could spray all over their clothing and their objects. In the meanwhile, my kid is in my party-heels more often than I am.

Jen: Your chapter called Through the Great Room, Past the Gym hits the nail on the head in terms of the present state of our society. We all wanted bigger and better, yet look at where we are now as a nation. How do you think the American household’s need to cut back will positively affect the familial unit as a whole?

Quinn: I’d like to think there will be benefits, but I don’t know anyone who is saying things like “Gosh kids, let’s avoid the crowds in the Hamptons this summer. Let’s cancel the $100,000 a month rental house and just sit around enjoying our backyard and having Game Night!” I know people who are acutely aware of how much longer they have on COBRA and how many people have been laid off from their spouse’s company this year. A friend of mine, her husband having been laid off two years ago, describes herself as an early adopter of the new poverty. We’re all more awake to the things which really matter and what doesn’t (Hi, new car! See you in about five years!), but it’s hard to imagine how living in constant dread positively affects anyone.

Jen: Your story about summer camps in And the Livin’ is Easy was so true. There seems to be a summer camp for everything no matter what the cost or purpose. Not to mention the pressure involved in getting your child in the “right” one. If you could wave a magic wand and create the ultimate camp for your daughter, what would it be and why?

Quinn: She would come back at the end of every day having been encouraged to try something new, make a friend, work through a problem and eat a cruciferous vegetable without sobbing. Mostly, she’d be very, very tired.

Jen: The title of your book is quite catchy. Why did you choose it? And in what way does it best describe the chronicles of your life?

Quinn: Glad you like it. It was the title I came up with that made the marketing department happy, which was only slightly less difficult than writing the actual book. There were a few months there where if I was staring off into space it was safe to assume I was trying to come up with a title which made the marketing department think "Funny!" and "Wildly successful!" We finally came back around to the subtitle of the blog, which I thought up years ago while sitting at a stoplight. It's kind of "Notes from Underground," only girly. It was offered to the marketing department and, thankfully, they gave their big marketing-department collective nod of approval, and we were in the title business. Their only request was that the phrase be in the book, so I spent a taxing but ultimately pleasing week or so trying to crowbar it into the book. It's there, and I like to think it's not blatantly after-the-fact. And what does it mean? Oh, not a thing. But I bless the fortunes for giving me Brenda Copeland as an editor, who heard the title and remembered this bra ad. She felt the visual had the right combination of poor decision-making and potential harm (You will notice the car is off the tracks) and surreal good cheer; those traits say "Quinn Cummings" to me.

Jen: A question I just have to ask…what is the origin of your husband’s name, Consort? Is it a family name? (I like it! My husband’s name is Durbin!)

Quinn: Actually, when I first started writing the blog, I wanted to come up with a name for him which wasn’t actually his name. Consort is the official title for a man who has married a queen but isn’t actually royal himself. Since I am possibly the least regal person ever, I thought it had a certain subtle humor. Now I’m thinking perhaps it was subtle to the point of non-existent, which is where I fear a lot of my humor goes unless I monitor it closely. Although I’m loving your husband’s name and will start bothering friends who are pregnant with putting Durbin on their boy-name list.

Jen: What are your promotional plans for NOTES FROM THE UNDERWIRE? Will be you be participating in a book tour? Will you be scheduling Author Phone Chats? And if so, how would my readers go about scheduling one? Do you have a mailing list?

Quinn: For the moment, my author tour is small and modest, as befits 2009. I am, however, available for blog book tour events and would love to do Author Phone Chats. Follow me through Twitter (I’m Quinncy), get in touch with me and we’ll make it work.

Jen: Are you currently at work on your next project? Or, are you taking a break for the summer?

Quinn: I have an idea, and am currently in the “Actively avoiding writing it” stage of writing. I’m very good at that stage; it’s when I get everything dreary done in the house. Those copper-bottomed pans are going to sparkle, let me tell you.

Jen: Thank you so much for taking time to stop by and chat with my readers about your new release, NOTES FROM THE UNDERWIRE. I wish you all the best.

Quinn: Thank you so much for inviting me. I am very grateful to my blog and book-readers for their support and good wishes.

I hope you have enjoyed my interview with Quinn. Please stop by your favorite bookstore or local library branch and pick up a copy of NOTES FROM THE UNDERWIRE Adventures from My Awkward and Lovely Life today!

Better yet, how would you like to win one instead? Five readers to correctly answer the following trivia question will win their own copy of NOTES FROM THE UNDERWIRE.

What is Quinn’s name on Twitter?

Next month, I will be bringing to you my interview with Awista Ayub, author of the inspirational story HOWEVER TALL THE MOUNTAIN. You won’t want to miss it.

Until next month...Jen