This is the section where someone usually writes 6-8 paragraphs about how great you are and all the awards you’ve been given. Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I’m actually quite klutzy and embarrassing to be around (my sister’s currently concerned that I’ll fall and rip her dress whilst holding the bridal bouquet at her upcoming wedding), and the last award I was given was a third-place ribbon for Best Chocolate Chip Cookie in a 5th grade 4-H competition (I’ve since modified the recipe and think I could have a real shot at taking home the gold). Despite these obvious shortcomings, I do believe that everyone has a story, so if you’re interested in sticking around for the gory details, here’s mine.

I grew up with Baby-Sitter’s Club books, a Bob Ross paint set, wide-open spaces, and a mom who told me I was capable of doing anything I wanted to do. My aspirations at that time were to either A) work at Shopko, or B) become a Judd (yes, as in Naomi and Wynonna), and I got an astounding amount of joy from ordering oversized tie-dye shirt-and-legging outfits from the JCPenney catalog. By high school, I knew that I hated Excel spreadsheets and Algebra II, but was blissfully happy playing piano and writing songs. So, convinced that I was the protégé/love-child of Bruce Hornsby and Vanessa Carlton, I ate, slept, and breathed anything that resembled an ivory key and eventually ended up at Belmont University as a Commercial Piano major.

That was fantastic for about three days until I realized that I wanted to keep playing piano for fun, not as a full-time job. So, still suffocated by my math and science courses and feeling slightly out of place with the warbling-in-the-halls, Fame!-esque music crowd, I made a fortuitous switch to the English department. Perfection! At the same time, I fell backwards into a great job in the music industry, but continued writing for fun and occasionally complaining about the lack of positive role models for young girls. One night this vexation exploded into a full-blown idea and I sent an email to a recommended literary agent with little more than a cover letter and the naïve thought, “Hey, this could be a fun little project! Surely my family will buy four copies!”

That agent, the fabulous Caren Johnson, has obviously impeccable instincts and could immediately sense that I was an underrated writer on the verge of greatness…that, or she was just desperate for some new material. Either way, I signed with Hachette Book Group and a year later, How to Be a Hepburn in a Hilton World was born.

Fast-forward to today: I baked a batch of blueberry muffins, ordered a skirt from J.Crew (see former childhood interests, Baking and Shopping) and am beginning to work on Book Number Two. It’s nothing you’d expect and I like that. There are some other very exciting book-related projects taking shape that I can’t tell you about yet, but can assure you won’t be disappointed. Well, maybe you will be, but this time it won’t be my fault.

In closing, I like to think that How to Be a Hepburn is more of a movement than just a self-help etiquette guide. It’s a choice. A way of life. Yes, it’s a book that has no doubt changed my life, but it’s essentially a call to action that’s much bigger than me. It’s about women - of all ages, from everywhere around the world – taking a stand for class, self-respect, and dignity. I feel extremely blessed to be a small part of it, and am even more honored that you are along for the ride, too.