A book in review & author interview!

Book Description

Cat Glamour is an overweight 38-year-old divorcée who is struggling with finances, self-esteem, and balancing her personal life. While her 91-year-old, decidedly different, grandmother provides emotional support, Cat needs to take control of the life that has been shattered by her abusive ex-husband and tragic events of the past. On the day Cat decides to start an exercise routine, the last thing she expects is a modern-day Genie to pop out of her Wii machine. Unfortunately for Cat, her Genie is somewhat unreliable in his wish-granting capabilities. In a series of hilarious misadventures, he sends Cat to a castle in France and back in time 20 years in an attempt to solve both Cat’s weight issues and emotional stresses. Cat’s journey is one filled with quirky adventures, realistic love, and above all, self-discovery.

Review

First, I absolutely love Heather, her interview below is so fun and I thank her so much for taking the time to answer my questions, now to the review. I received this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was so much fun! Cat was a hilarious narrator and always told it how it was. I love the on going struggle she has with her body issues even when she has a personal genie. I enjoyed feeling like I was a part of Cat’s family and seeing how everything would play out. It’s a perfect, quirky Summer read, that will make you laugh out loud! I recommend this 4 star book to anyone who loves a fun read that keeps you guessing in the best way, xo!

Author Bio

Heather Grace Stewart is a Canadian magazine writer, author, and poet. Her first poem was published in her school newsletter when she was five, and she’s been hooked on writing ever since. Heather’s debut novel, Strangely, Incredibly Good, will be released by Morning Rain Publishing on June 5, 2014. Heather’s screenplay The Friends I’ve Never Met is her bestselling Kindle book to date, reaching #28 in Action & Adventure in Women’s Fiction in November 2013. Her third poetry collection, Carry On Dancing (Winter Goose Publishing, March 2012) charted on print and Kindle bestseller lists in Poetry and Canadian Poetry in Canada, the US, and the UK. Heather is also the author of the Kindle bestselling poetry collections Leap and Where the Butterflies Go, two non-fiction books for youth, and a book of children’s poetry,The Groovy Granny. Born in Ottawa, she lives with her husband and daughter near Montreal. In her free time, she loves to take photos, scrapbook, cartoon, inline skate, dance like nobody’s watching, and eat Swedish Berries — usually not at the same time. For more information, visit Heather’s blog and her official website, and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

Author Interview

When did you know you wanted to be an author? What inspired you?

I knew I wanted to be a writer – not necessarily an author – by the time I was 15. I’d always loved creative writing, but that year I volunteered to write some articles and take photos for the local (Kanata, Ontario) paper, and I loved seeking out and writing those stories. I knew I wanted to study Journalism, but I decided to do the degree after my BA(H) in Canadian Studies. I think my studies in Canadian, American and French literature solidified my interest in fiction writing, but I still went ahead and studied journalism after I graduated, and enjoyed it. Over the years, the two disciplines, journalism and creative writing, have worked well together in my career, and led me to exactly where I needed to be. Where am I again? I’m not sure I could have written this novel at any other time. I think I had to put out my screenplay first to realize I had it in me to write a longer work.

What were your favorite books growing up?

My favorite book growing up was The Neverending Story by Michael Ende. That’s one case where I adored the book more than the movie. I just loved how Bastian is pulled into the fantasy world, and that’s sort of what happens to Cat in Strangely, Incredibly Good. I still have my original hardcover copy of The Neverending Story, with the red and green ink used to distinguish the two worlds. I can’t wait for my daughter to start reading it. I also adored The Famous Five books by Enid Blyton, and the Choose Your Own Adventure series. I guess it’s no surprise I like writing adventurous novels for adventurous women!

What advice would you give anyone who wanted to be an author?

If you want to be an author, read a lot to figure out what you most like to read – or what’s not out there that you wish you could read. Write what you would want to read yourself. Write for yourself first; don’t try to serve a certain audience. I like to say, ‘If you build it, they will come.’ Worry about the audience after you’ve finished the book (that’s marketing). You don’t need formal training to become an author, but you do need to carve out writing time every single day. The Internet is your biggest enemy! It can suck away so much writing time. When I’m writing, I rarely log on until lunch time, and often, I take days away from it all. It’s easy to spend a lot of time plotting, planning and talking about your book, but in the end, you just need to make time for it, every day, for several months. Sit down, shut up, and write the damn thing! That’s what I told myself most mornings.

What’s your favorite food?

Give me a few slices of pizza with pineapple and green olives and a pint of beer and I’m a happy camper! I also love A&W burgers, and will never grow tired of that frosty mug of root beer. I do love Thai and Indian food, but note how I mentioned the fast food first. 🙂

Fave thing to do in your spare time?

I love spending time with my daughter. She just cracks me up. We have spa days at home, and make chocolate lollipops, and do Wii Dance together. I take a lot of photographs, and love gardening – a hobby my husband and I share.

Fave beauty product?

Is moisturizer with SPF considered a beauty product? I love mine. First thing I do in the morning before pouring a coffee is wash my face and apply moisturizer with an SPF. Geesh, I sound like a commercial. But it’s a ritual for me, morning and night. I mostly do it for how great it makes my face feel. I usually use an SPF 20 daytime moisturizer. Do I reveal my fave? Ok, it’s Oil of Olay! I’ve been using that for about a decade. Then, later in the day I put on an SPF 60. I don’t go outside in the summer without that. I’ve started wearing my cowgirl hat almost every day now too because I burn so easily. It’s crazy that I still get a golden tan every summer even with all that SPF applied. I’m girly girly when it comes to clothes and shoes, but not so much about beauty products, so I can’t believe I just went on for a paragraph about SPF moisturizer. You’d laugh if you saw my nails every day. The gardening doesn’t help. I wish I had a live-in manicurist!

What’s your guilty pleasure?

Since I’m a journalist, in love with getting facts right and against rumor-spreading, I feel quite guilty about this one: I love reading tabloids in the bathtub (with a beer!) every now and again. Gasp! I try to stray away from the actual tabloids and read Peoplemagazine, which I think gets its facts more or less right… but still, it’s mindless stuff. I like looking at what a celebrity was wearing *that* week, and then I try to find a similar look for cheaper, and of course, hope I wear it better. It’s just for the fashions. That’s what I tell myself. I don’t really care when or if Jennifer Aniston ever gets married, but I want to see what shoes she’s wearing in June. LOL. Now I’m blushing!

What’s next in your writing career?

I’m working on another novel, but I’m only in the beginning stages. I’m going to be busy touring the Montreal area and parts of Ontario with Strangely, Incredibly Good, so I’m not sure I’ll take on much freelance writing this year, but I’ll still write and record poetry for school textbooks, and I hope to speak at a few conferences. I’m looking forward to meeting some more of my readers in person this year!