Thursday, March 25, 2010

Guest Author: Beth Kendrick + Giveaway!

Beth Kendrick, author of Second Time Around, has been kind enough to stop by Reading with Tequila to tell us about dream jobs.

Let’s talk dream jobs for a second.

If financial security weren’t an issue, if you didn’t have to worry about all those pesky little details like health benefits and retirement accounts and paying your electric bill, what would you want to do with your days?

That’s the question that sparked SECOND TIME AROUND, or as I like to refer to it, the “English major book”. People always ask novelists where we get our ideas, which can be frustrating, because most of the time we have no clue where we get our ideas. They just…materialize. (Cue high-pitched, mysterious music.)

But with this book, I know exactly where I got the idea: I was sitting around with a bunch of my friends from college, bemoaning our collective lack of career direction and laughing about how “we all should have gone to law school.”

Now behold the first line in the book: “We all should have gone to law school.” That whole night’s bar tab should have been a tax write-off! Here is the thirty-second summary of SECOND TIME AROUND:

Every summer, a group of former English majors hold a mini-reunion. They laugh, reminisce, and commiserate about their soul-sucking jobs. Maybe they should have listened to everyone who warned them to study something “practical.” 

Then an unexpected windfall arrives—one million dollars, to be exact—with the stipulation that they use it to jump-start their new careers. Almost overnight, a professor, a bartender, a copywriter, and an administrative assistant reinvent themselves as a bed-and-breakfast owner, a pastry chef, a novelist, and an event planner. But the changes in their professional roles create unexpected turbulence in their personal lives, and soon the secrets and scandals from their past resurface. 

When you’re mired in a fluorescent-lit cubicle hell all day, every day, opening a bed and breakfast starts to sound pretty great. Or being a photojournalist, vineyard operator, restaurateur, travel writer, red carpet stylist, international supermodel, etc. Those jobs have glamour, adventure, cache!

But not so fast. I interviewed a pastry chef, a contractor, an innkeeper, and a wedding planner, and got a fascinating glimpse into what they actually do all day. And I am here to tell you, the life of a pastry chef is not all cream puffs and chocolate. Every job has downsides that may not be readily apparent to the casual observer. Take being a novelist, for example. Signing contracts = love! Doing copyedits for the fifteenth time = hate. Sometimes we simultaneously love and hate our jobs (see: revising a manuscript on an incredibly tight deadline).

The bed and breakfast owner had the best stories. She explained to me that the rowdiest guests were often the “professional, suburban, middle-aged married couples” because they desperately needed to blow off steam since they were always so busy and responsible at home, and so they would cut loose and carouse and get into the shower and…well, it’s all in the book!

Speaking of which, you can get a sneak peek at the first chapter on my website: www.bethkendrick.com.

And I want to know (Jennifer, you too!): what is your dream job?

{Although it changes almost daily, it's always somewhere within the book industry. As of this exact moment, if money was no object, I would love to own my own bookstore.}

About the Author

Beth Kendrick got her B.A. in English at Carleton College before earning her Ph.D. in child psychology and then pulling a professional U-turn to pursue her dream job of becoming a novelist. When she is not slavishly working on her next novel, she’s cheering on the Chicago Cubs, watching TV series of questionable intellectual value (“Real Housewives of Orange County,” we’re looking at you), going to the gym, or learning how to bake (those last two kind of cancel each other out). She lives in Arizona with her family and two unruly rescue dogs. You can visit her website at www.BethKendrick.com.

About the Book

Every summer, four college friends hold a mini-reunion. They laugh, reminisce, and commiserate about their soul-sucking jobs. Maybe they should have listened to everyone who warned them to study something “practical.”

Then an unexpected windfall arrives—one million dollars, to be exact—with the stipulation that they use it to jump-start their new careers. Almost overnight, a professor, a bartender, a copywriter, and an administrative assistant reinvent themselves as a novelist, an event planner, a pastry chef, and a bed-and-breakfast owner. But the changes in their professional roles create unexpected turbulence in their personal lives, and soon the secrets and scandals from their past start to resurface.

For anyone who has ever wondered “What if?,” this engaging novel provides a sweet, funny look at friendship, romance, and second chances.

Giveaway

Beth has offered to give away SIGNED copy of Second Time Around to one lucky reader!

Deadline for entry is Wednesday, March 31 at 11:59pm EST. US and Canada only.

To enter, leave a comment answering Beth's question: What is your dream job?

Be sure to leave an email address so I can contact the winner.

29 comments :

  1. My dream job is the one I currently have - stay at home, homeschooling mom. It is the best job in the world.

    This book looks awesome. I have added it to my wishlist!

    julie s
    julstew at gmail dot com

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  2. Great contest! I am really looking forward to reading this book. My dream job is to teach, which is what I am currently doing; however, I would love to teach adults and work with student teachers.

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  3. My dream job is open a dancing school for kids. I used to teach dance in college and would love to be able to do that again.

    lizzi0915 at aol dot com

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  4. I love Beth Kendrick and can't wait to read this book! My dream job is to be a fiction novelist!

    js1997 (AT) gmail (DOT) com

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  5. This sounds like a wonderful book!

    If I could decide on a dream job, I might actually have a shot at doing it!

    I would really like to work in the collection development or cataloging department for a public library.

    angela.donner (at) gmail.com

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  6. My dream job would be to incorporate my love of knitting and retail. I would also just love to have a paycheck.
    msgb245 at gmail dot com

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  7. My dream job is to be a public librarian. I am pursuing that in school so I am excited! This book sounds fantastic so please count me in!

    stephaniet117(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  8. This book sounds wonderful!

    My dream job is to be a veterinarian. I am working towards that in school right now, but it is so faraway at the moment that I don't know if it will happen or not.

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  9. I wish I knew! I'm in one of those "can't figure out what to do with my life" phases. I think maybe it would be in literary PR or marketing... something I should probably find out more about.

    Great giveaway!

    Tara SG
    contact@taraSG.com
    www.25hourbooks.com

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  10. This book sounds great. In a way I'm actually beginning to pursue my dream job right now. I would love to be involved in marketing books and encouraging more people to read all of the fantastic material that is out there. Of course with blogging I'm not getting paid for it, but I love doing it and it makes the paying job a little bit easier to handle.

    teresasreadingcorner at gmail dot com

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  11. I'd love to own a big old fashioned book store that carried all the new titles(so I can read them of course). I'd have an apartment upstairs so that I could slip down and snatch a book as soon as I finished the one in my hand.

    alterlisa AT yahoo DOT com
    http://lisaslovesbooksofcourse.blogspot.com/
    (\___/)
    (='.'=) Happy Easter from Bun!
    (")_(")

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  12. Ooh, please enter me! Great contest.

    Dream job...a used bookstore owner in London.

    Kelsey
    krae991@yahoo.com
    www.thedoortowonderland.blogspot.com

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  13. For me my dream job is definitely becoming a full time writer.

    Can't wait to check out the book.

    sadler1279@yahoo.com

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  14. My dream job would be a neonatologist. I really have a passion for kids and I think it would be really rewarding to be able to really help families.

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  15. My dream job would be either an author or maybe a lawyer in criminal justice!

    my e-mail is on my profile!

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  16. My dream job is to be an author. Spending my days reading, writing and researching would be heaven!

    whatinabox at gmail dot com

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  17. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  18. My dream job is to be a marine biologist. Spending my days working with animals in the ocean and studying them would be amazing.

    mamurray12(at)live(dot)com

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  19. This sounds like a great book! My dream job is working in the music industry - which I do :)

    alitareads[at]gmail[dot]com

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  20. Ohh, I have a dream job. I'll have it one day too. I want to get paid to visit beautiful Spas from around the world, experience them and give a review either on paper or tv. What do you think?

    dorcontest at gmail dot com

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  21. Ohhh,
    My dream job is to be an author.
    I've wanted to be one since I was 11 years old.

    -Leilani
    vampiregirl813@gmail.com

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  22. I would love to be the head big cats keeper at the Philadelphia zoo. I would love to take care of these gorgeous beast.

    usignolc(at)yahooDOTcom

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  23. MY dream job would be to an author/writer or work with insurance (for some reason I find it fascinating to save people money on life & auto insurance), but mainly anything to do with my love of books

    tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com

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  24. This sounds like a terrific book and would love to win. Thanks for the great giveaway.

    My dream job has always been to write. I began in grade school with poems and songs, then wrote short stories, articles for local paper and now I have several book length manuscripts and am now working on one to complete, hopefully soon. I just retired and finding time to do all I need to do or would like to do is exhausting.LOL

    misskallie2000 at yahoo dot com

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  25. My dream job, like yours, would be to own a bookstore, also!! I'm doing the second next best thing, I work at a library!!

    mlawson17 at hotmail dot com

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  26. My dream job (which I am currently going to school for): I want to be an author. But, I'm realistic, so I have a backup plan that I would also love dearly: a book editor. LOL

    sexywomenread@yahoo.com

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  27. A dream job for me would be able to read all day, and make websites for a living. It's a possibility, maybe? But for right now the dream is to go to college and major in computers and teaching. And from there life will lead the way...

    ~Andrea
    loud.words.and.sounds@gmail.com

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  28. My dream job would be to be an owner of a music label or a publishing company. Somewhere where I could be my own boss and help other people also achieve their dreams. Thanks for the giveaway!
    email bangersis(at)msn(dot)com

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  29. My dream job would be a model. You make lots of money, and get to travel. But you don't work to hard. This book sounds wonderful. Please enter me. Thanks!

    ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net

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