Friday, July 20, 2012

Friday Five -- Huntley Fitzpatrick


Today's Friday Five features the lovely Huntley Fitzpatrick, author of MY LIFE NEXT DOOR (which I just read, and which is fabulous!)  She is funny and engaging on Twitter, a sister Apocalypsies and Penguin author, and a Shakespeare fan.  What's not to love?

THE FIVE:

 1.  What single thing would improve the quality of your life?

Nanny/Housekeeper in a bottle. I’d so love to be able to call these up genii-style and then dismiss at will.

2.  What is the worst job you’ve done?

Post college I worked for an investment firm in a job that got me a great stay at a NYC townhouse, but I had to walk cranky, flatulent dogs…..Math…annoyed beasts….not my best choices.

3.  What is your most treasured possession?

In a good way, I don’t care much for stuff anymore. My parents were married for a long long time, then split up and we had to choose what we wanted fast. I realized how little of what mattered was contained in any object. It was a good lesson.

4.  What one word do you think describes you best?

Persistent. The fact that I don’t give up—on things, on dreams, on people, is the best virtue I can claim.

5.  If you knew you would be stranded on a desert island, which book, piece of music, and snack food would you take with you?

Ooh. That’s a really good one. And of course, a hard one. I’d love to say The Complete Works of Shakespeare, and honestly, that could work. I majored in English Lit and wrote my Senior Essay on Hamlet and still feel as though I have a lot to learn.

I send out a list of questions to all interviewees, and allow them to choose the five they want to answer most - Huntley has accidentally answered six, and because I love the answer to the next question, I'm letting this slide...

6.  What intrigues you?

People. Oh I love to people-watch. I am not someone who can write at Starbucks or Panera as, very inconveniently, I require absolute quiet when I write. But I get my fix on drama by watching what goes on when I get coffee!

ABOUT MY LIFE NEXT DOOR:


“One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time.”

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy, affectionate. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen-year-old Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs her terrace and changes everything. As the two fall fiercely in love, Jase's family makes Samantha one of their own. Then in an instant, the bottom drops out of her world and she is suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A dreamy summer read, full of characters who stay with you long after the story is over.

You can order MY LIFE NEXT DOOR here.

ABOUT HUNTLEY:

You can find Huntley on her website.
On Twitter.


Monday, July 16, 2012

Intermission

I'm taking a breather from my revision marathon and just had to post this video that my friend Kristen Held mentioned to me.  Enjoy!