Hi—thanks for coming, and thanks for your interest in Shelter Me. In February 2011, I have a new novel coming out called Deep Down True. I can’t wait to share it with you.

Dana Stellgarten is the protagonist of Deep Down True. She’s newly divorced, running low on funds, and has her hands full as her happy-go-lucky son suddenly develops anger management problems, and her daughter struggles to keep her head above the shark-infested waters of middle school. Things seem to be looking up as Dana finds work, begins dating and is befriended by the popular mother of her daughter’s new BFF. But she soon learns that the tension between being true to herself and being liked doesn’t end in middle school.

I’ve always wanted to write about middle school—the insecurity, cliques, shifting loyalties, bodily changes, and budding romances. And I wanted to invent a character who, because of her circumstances, is temporarily sentenced to an adult version of middle school. Still smarting from her divorce, Dana is feeling insecure, socially marginalized, and overwhelmed by added responsibilities. Most of all, she desperately wants to be liked—the ultimate middle school trait. Dana needs to learn to embrace the new identity that develops as she leads her family through difficult times.

My first novel, Shelter Me, begins four months after Janie LaMarche’s husband dies suddenly. A stranger arrives with plans to build a porch onto her house ordered by her husband before his death. Dealing with a construction project is the last thing Janie needs as she struggles to function in a fogbank of grief. But once she realizes her husband had meant to surprise her with this gift—his last, as it turns out—she can’t bring herself to cancel the deal. As the porch is built, Janie is slowly exhumed from the pit of her misery by an unlikely assortment of rescuers.

I hope you’ll enjoy these stories, and that you’ll let me know what you think—email me or leave a comment on my blog. Sign up for the newsletter if you like, and I’ll send you fairly infrequent, but highly scintillating updates from time to time. And thanks again for spending a few moments with me.

Warm regards,
Juliette