An Interview with Mary Kay Andrews & a Giveaway!

With great pleasure, I’m thrilled to have interviewed one of my favorite authors. She’s funny, inspiring, and her books are a true joy to read. Without further ado, here’s New York Times Bestselling Author, Mary Kay Andrews!Author, Mary Kay Andrews

INTERVIEW

Have you always loved to write? Yes! On the first day of first grade our teacher asked us to draw a picture of what we wanted to be when we grew up. While the other kids drew firemen and nurses and teachers and cowboys, I drew a picture of a lady sitting at a tall table in front of a wall of books—my six-year-old image of what a writer looked like.

How did you celebrate when you first book was published? With a party! My friends threw me a party at the house that inspired the setting for my first book, EVERY CROOKED NANNY.

Where is your ideal place to write? I like to write with the sunshine streaming in on me—at our vacation house on Tybee Island, or in the sun room of our restored Craftsman bungalow in Atlanta.

How has social media changed your career? Social media has connected me with so many fans and given me instant feedback on what my readers like and dislike. They enjoy being part of a community, and I enjoy hearing from them. That said, I spend a tremendous amount of time and energy staying connected with them.

What is the best advice you can give to a new author? Don’t fixate on writing that first “perfect chapter.” Just get on with the story—and finish it. You can go back and revise and hone and polish after you get the story down in black and white.

Who or what inspires you to write? Envy—when I read a great novel or chapter, I want to try to create something just as moving.

What is your favorite word? Vintage!

Every writer must have a…: Fine-point black felt tip pen.

What time of day do you seem to work best? Mornings when I wake up with an idea bubbling up from my self-consciousness, I reach for my laptop, prop myself up in bed and write like a woman possessed.

If you’re not writing, you’re probably: junking

What are you reading right now? Lee Smith’s Guests on Earth.

Are you a panster or planner? Mostly a pantser, although I’m always trying to plot and plan.

Do you have a motto? You can’t fix what you ain’t wrote.

Where is your favorite vacation place? Tuscany. Would love to go back someday soon.

Do you and your family have any Christmas traditions? If so, what are they? Children’s mass Christmas Eve, baking cookies together, Christmas stockings opened first thing Christmas morning, burning all the dried-out greenery in the fireplace Christmas night.

**GIVEAWAY**

 **U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY, PLEASE**

If you’re in the Christmas spirit as much as I’m beginning to be, then you must enter to win the prizes in the picture seen to the left. I’m currently reading “Christmas Bliss” and am loving it, and I know you will, too!

How to enter: 

Step 1) Write a comment below telling me about your favorite Christmas tradition.

Step 2) Do NOT forget to leave your email address! (This is so I can contact you to let you know you’ve won). **If you do not follow this step, I have no way of contacting you.

Picking a winner:

1) I will draw a winner out of a hat on Friday, November 22nd!