Another visit from a Melissa...plus a book giveaway!

**Giveaway is now closed**

At CLC, we're always excited to have authors that share a first name with us. Last year it was Melissa Senate and this time it is Melissa Ford! Not only does she share our first name, but she also lives near Melissa A. (and like Melissa A., she's also Jewish).

Her blog, Stirrup Queens, has been recognized by the Wall Street Journal as one of the top ten motherhood blogs. Her highly-praised first book, "Navigating the Land of If," is a work of non-fiction about the emotional landscape of infertility. She is also a contributing editor at BlogHer.

Melissa is here today to talk about her novel, "Life from Scratch". She also has three copies to give to some lucky readers in the US or Canada.

If you like what you've read here, visit Melissa on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo credit: Mary Gardella of Love Life Images

Melissa P: What inspired you to write "Life From Scratch"?

Melissa F: The idea for the book came to me while I was crossing a library parking lot, holding a stack of cook books I had checked out. What if a woman used the year post-divorce to teach herself how to cook? A half hour later, during my next errand to the food store, I wondered what if that woman became a blogger and that’s how she found the voice she lost during the marriage. I think you start from a place of writing what you know and dive off into imagination from there.

Melissa P: What was your biggest challenge while writing "Life From Scratch"?
Melissa F: Probably getting enough writing time! I'm terrible at jumping back into writing when I've been away from a project for a few days so I had to keep up a steady stream of writing in order to keep with the flow.

Melissa P: What is your usual writing routine?
Melissa F: I usually start off by writing a blog post. I don't always post these practice posts, but they're to get me warmed up to do book writing. Sometimes I'll also read something in the genre I'm writing, just to get in the mood. I try to write daily -- even if it's just for a half hour.

Melissa P: How do you like to spend your time when you are not writing or blogging?
Melissa F: Playing with my twins. I do a lot of volunteer work during the day while they're in school. And I bake... a lot. I have to give away a lot of the stuff I bake because I bake more than we can eat. Recently, I started back up with guitar lessons and I'm supposed to be practicing daily.

Melissa A: If "Life from Scratch" were made into a movie, who would you cast in the lead roles?
Melissa F: I could see Jennifer Garner as Rachel. A much younger Javier Bardem as Gael. Honestly, I think that while you sometimes need someone familiar to anchor a project, I like the idea of having people I don't know in the roles.

Melissa A: What is your favorite thing about living by DC?
Melissa F: The architecture. DC is gorgeous. There's no sky in New York -- it's blotted out by the tall buildings. But you can see the sky everywhere in DC because our buildings are so short.

Melissa A: Who is your favorite celebrity named Melissa?
Melissa F: I was going to answer the porn star who shares my name because I love it when people email me, thinking they'll reach her (I'm so sorry, boys). But instead I'll go with Melissa Etheridge. This question made me realize that we need more celebrities named Melissa.

Melissa A: Who is your favorite fictional character named Melissa?
Melissa F: I literally can't think of a fictional Melissa beyond Zeus's nurse.

(Note from CLC: We think that this should be changed immediately! Attention all writers: Start giving us more characters named Melissa in books, movies, and TV! ;) )

Melissa A: What is the biggest challenge with having twins? Favorite thing about having twins?
Melissa F: The biggest challenge is that you only get to go through a life stage once. It sometimes feels like time moves even faster when parenting twins. My favourite thing is watching them interact; watching their relationship. They're good friends who enjoy playing with one another and are very protective of one another (they can also tease each other like no one else!).

Melissa P: If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
Melissa F: I have always wanted to go to the Azores since I saw pictures of the islands in a National Geographic book when I was a child.

Thanks again to Melissa for sharing her thoughts with us and for contributing the books for the giveaway!

How to win "Life from Scratch":

Please comment below with your e-mail address.
(Please note: Entries without an e-mail address will NOT be counted. You can use AT and DOT to avoid spam. Or provide a link to your facebook page or blog if you can receive messages there.)

Bonus entries (can be listed all in one post):
1. Please tell us: If you could learn one new skill over the course of a year, what would it be?
2. Follow this blog and post a comment saying you are a follower (if you already follow, that's fine too).
3. Post this contest on Facebook or Twitter or in your blog, and leave a comment saying where you've posted it.
4. Join Chick Lit Central on Facebook. Edit settings if you don't want to receive a lot of messages at your e-mail account. (If you're already a member, let us know that too.)

5. Add a friend to our Facebook group. (Tell us who you added.)

Be sure to remind them about editing their settings. :)

US/Canada only. Giveaway ends May 22nd at midnight EST.

Also by Melissa Ford: