Author Spotlight + GIVEAWAY: Anita Higman

It is a pleasure to welcome Anita Higman back to The Power of Words! I always enjoy the enchanting characters, storylines, humor and faith that are part of everything she writes - and she is a sweet, caring person.

Today, Anita will tell us about her short novella, A Matchmaker in Middlebury, which follows up on characters from A Marriage in Middlebury. Anita can certainly pack a lot into a short format - because it's highly entertaining, funny, and spiritually uplifting. You can see my review here.

Anita is giving away two print copies of the novel, A Marriage in Middlebury (reviewed here), and three digital copes of the novella, A Matchmaker in Middlebury. Entry details are at the end of this post.

These short-answer questions are a fun way to get to know a little about Anita . . .

Best present you ever received?
Recently, my husband bought me a Kindle for our 35 wedding anniversary. Not very romantic, but so appreciated!

Farthest place from home you’ve ever been? 
Melbourne, Australia. I loved it there!

What place or country would you like to visit? 
New Zealand and Norway

If you were a crayon, what color would you be? 
Lavender. It’s such a friendly color, don’t you think?

Biggest fear? 
Failure. Even the word has a nasty ring to it.

The last movie you watched and enjoyed? 
My Brilliant Career (oldie but goodie)

Favorite ice cream flavor? 
Licorice (black not red)

Biggest pet peeve? 
Unkind deeds, especially if they come from me!

If you were a given a gift card to any restaurant, where would you want to eat? 
My husband and I don’t eat out much anymore, but maybe it would be nice to go to a seafood place in Galveston.

What task do you dread doing each day (or week)? 
I hate housework of every kind. Don’t you? It requires no creativity, and when you’re finished you just have to do it all over again!

What are you currently reading for pleasure? 
Nothing right now, since I have two books under deadline. But I love to read the classics.

Q:  Tell us a bit about your novelette, A Matchmaker in Middlebury.

This novelette can be read as a standalone story, but it is also a sequel to the book, A Marriage in Middlebury. This new mini-tale is mostly comedy and could be considered dessert and coffee rather than a heavy meal. Matchmaker is priced at 99 cents. I hope you find it to be a tasty treat! Here’s a blurb:

"Meredith Steinberg takes the stage again in A Matchmaker in Middlebury and is given another chance to dance with destiny and meddle in the romantic affairs of two lovelorn singles. But Meredith’s skills as a yenta are stretched to the limit as she discovers that her golden egg-of-a-plan has a perilous crack. In the end, however, heartstrings are indeed knotted together as two singles find tender love—they’re just not the two people Meredith paired for marital bliss…"


Q:  Since A Matchmaker in Middlebury is a romantic comedy, do you consider yourself a funny person?

Sometimes I am. It depends on my mood. I don’t like hearing jokes or telling them, but I do like situation comedy, where people do and say off-beat things. I am a big fan of P.G. Wodehouse, and I’ve listened to hours of his work on CDs. He is an absolutely brilliant storyteller, and he’s hilarious. Anyway, his work sort of jangled my funny bone enough that I wanted to give comedy a try. I usually have some humor in my books, but this was a leap for me. I sincerely hope readers get some chuckles out of the story.


Q:  The heroine, Meredith, is a real hoot. Was her character inspired from someone you know?

It was a little bit. I have a lovely friend named Martha Marks, who’s done some stand-up comedy, and she inspired me to write this quirky and loveable character. In fact, I dedicated this novelette to her.


Q:  Do you think laughter is important in today’s culture?

Very much so. We seem to wake up angry and move way too fast. I think there is plenty of medical evidence now that shows we humans need to laugh more. It’s good for our health. And that’s what I hope to give readers—the gift of laughter.


Q:  What new projects do you have on the horizon?

I will have a new novel coming out later in 2014 entitled, A Question of Destiny. Here’s a sneak peek at the blurb for this book.

"Ian Chalmers, a multi-millionaire, is so captivated by Lucy O’Brien when he hears about her heroism that he decides to change Lucy’s life by giving her part of his fortune and by introducing her to his faithful and unmarried assistant, Andrew Whitfield. After Lucy accepts Ian’s ten million dollars, she struggles with the pressures and temptations that arise from living in the city with her newly acquired windfall. She wants to simplify her life by moving to the Texas Hill Country. But Lucy and Andrew have grown to care for each other, and with her move so far away, and his passion for living in the big city, they finds themselves at a crossroads. Through their menagerie of choices and follies, will Lucy and Andrew find their destinies in life and in love?"


Q:  Where can readers interact with you?

I have a Contact Me button my website at anitahigman.com or you can catch up with me on my Facebook Reader page. I’d love to hear from you!


Q:  Where can we find this novelette, A Matchmaker in Middlebury?

Here’s the link!
http://tinyurl.com/pr4etdq

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GIVEAWAY

To enter the drawing for Anita's books, simply answer ONE of the short-answer questions I asked Anita at the beginning of this interview and leave your e-mail in a safe format. Also indicate which book you'd like to receive if you win - a print copy of A Marriage in Middlebury or a Kindle copy of the short story A Matchmaker in Middlebury. If you're willing, it's also helpful to share about this giveaway on Facebook.

Please "like" my Facebook page, ThePowerofWordsBookReviews, if you haven't already. And new followers of this blog are always welcome!

• E-mail required, one entry per person. Odds of winning are based on number of entries.
• Contest ends at midnight PST on Monday, August 11. No purchase necessary.
• Winner will be chosen by Random.org and contacted by e-mail on Wednesday, August 13. Respond within 48 hours of notification or another winner will be chosen.
• Eligibility: US residents, 18 and older