Thank you for having me. Iโm very excited to be here and so happy that today is
release day for my debut novel
FIND MY WAY HOME. A
contemporary story about a small town Southern gal wanting more from life and
thinking if she could only hit the road for the big city, she might find what
sheโs looking for. *cough, cough* Well, we all know thatโs not necessarily true.
Bertie Anderson, wants to make it big as an interior designer. Sheโs three weeks
away from reaching her goal when sheโs given the challenge of redesigning the
old Victorian in town sheโs always dreamed about. But thereโs a catch: if she
finishes in three months, sheโll be rewarded with a big bonus.
Big. Piece
of cake, right? It would be if her client wasnโt bad boy Keith Morgan, retired
tennis pro and single-dad-on-the-edge.
Keith has moved to Harmony, NC with a huge chip on his shoulder (along with a
ton of guilt) to make a better life for himself and his ten-year old daughter.
What heโs not prepared for is small town, Southern quirkiness, his auntโs
ultimatum to get married in three months, and his uncontrollable attraction to
his maddening designer, Bertie.
The question most people ask me is: how do I manage to do it all? The answer:
Iโm a ridiculous, obnoxious, multi-tasker. (people who know me will back me up)
Like my heroine Bertie, I have a constant need to be doing
somethingโฆ
anything. Itโs a terrible sickness. How many of you sit and
watch TV without doing anything else? (Everyone is picturing a guy they know and
love, chilling in front of the TV and drinking a beer.) TV watching allows me
time to wash pots and pans, fold laundry or work on a design project. Not sure
how I got this way except I come from a very large family (one of nine siblings)
of Type A personalities where we all kept busy to avoid things we hated like:
picking up sticks, cleaning the basement, sorting through attic boxes, pressure
cleaning the house and unloading and putting away four baskets of groceries. We
all knew, including our friends, to be scarce on Friday afternoons when my
mother would return home with a station wagon full of groceries.
Bertie is always working on a different project like dog sitting, feeding her
neighbor, waitressing or decorating for the town festival. She enjoys feeling
useful (crazy younginโ!)
and she has issues saying
no. Where she
finds time for her interior design business is a mystery. Except I know
exactlyโฆbecause Iโm the same way. Her hunky client, Keith worries that she wonโt
devote the time and talent needed to renovate his home. He also worries about
his unwanted attraction to her and if he can be a good father to his ten-year
old daughterโฆbut I digress.
The problem with being a chronic multi-tasker is you never learn to relax and
smell the rosesโฆliterally. I have to force myself to stop and breathe and
actually look at a beautiful sunset or feel the cool breeze or really listen to
the story my child is telling me while I read a recipe, text a message, make a
list, sweep the floor and toss another load of laundry in the washer. Thatโs
manic! Iโm not proud of this ability, because quite frankly, itโs exhausting.
But Iโm not alone here. Come onโฆshow of hands. Yep, thereโs a bunch of you
multi-taskers reading this right now, while making a mental grocery list or
thinking about checking your bank statement, or remembering you have books due
back at the library. Am I right??? *nodding*
I converse with many people (mostly women, because letโs face itโฆmen are
anti-multi-task) who are on the same wild ride and manage to work, clean, write,
pay bills and build a sea-worthy boat all before the sun sets and they have to
start dinner. For me, it has become a way of life. Yes, Iโm a writer and love to
sit in front of my computer and create fun, fictitious worlds, but Iโm also a
designer like Bertie, personal chef to several clients, and mother to two great
kids who are wonderfully self-sufficient, but still need me every now and then.
So, like my energetic heroine, I create pockets of time early in the morning and
late in the evening devoted to writing. And when I break and go for walks, I
make myself stopโฆand smell the roses, gardenias, honeysuckle...and remember to
breathe.
Thank you again for having me and I hope you enjoy
FIND MY WAY HOME with
its sparks and laughter.
Find out more at about Michele at her website or on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, and Pinterest.
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