Entries about barnesandnoble

Gwyneth Paltrow, Emily, and Me

A trick I use when I create a fictional character is to visual who would portray them in the movie. It helps me to write when I can visualize the character; it gives them life, and they become incredibly real to me.

When I created the character of Emily Williams, the mother in my novel HARDSCRABBLE WAY, I visualized Gwyneth Paltrow. I could see Gwyneth as Emily running to classes in yoga pants as she played a privileged but unhappy wife. I even gave her a song to sing because I love that the multi-talented Gwyneth can sing. I imagined Gwyneth portraying Emily as she falls into the depression that strikes her after a tragic event causes the family to lose their money and forces Emily and her daughter to become homeless. I can see Gwyneth rising above the misfortunes to become a stronger, better woman and mother.

When I saw that Ms. Paltrow was going to be at the 5th Avenue Barnes & Noble signing her newest cookbook It’s All Easy, I decided to go, give her my book, and tell her how I created Emily for her to play in the movie. Pretty cheeky of me, right?

I waited on line in the rain April 12 until the store took pity on us brave souls and let us inside. Little did they know exactly how brave I was. It took every ounce of courage I had to pitch my book and gift it to Gwyneth. I was terrified. I think I was afraid security would kick me out for giving her my book and my press release. No such thing. Her people took my cell phone to snap photos of me with her as she signed my cookbook while I told her I wrote a character in my book for her to play in the movie. I told her I’d be honored if she would accept my book.

Not only is she stunning, she is gracious and lovely and I swear, she glows. She seemed genuinely excited as I spoke and she accepted my book. I am so glad the photos are here so I can see her reaction, because I was completely star-struck and not fully present in the moment. I’ve met and spoken with my share of celebrities. None of them caused me to go weak in the knees like she did.

So I pitched Gwyneth Paltrow my book and I’m happy to share these photos. It was an out-of-body experience.

HARDSCRABBLE WAY is available and Barnes & Noble online, and on Amazon as a paperback and an ebook.