Lauren Baratz-Logsted is the sister magnet, plus a book giveaway

**Giveaway is now closed**

Lauren Baratz-Logsted writes chick lit that lots of women can laugh at and relate to, which is why we call her a sister-magnet. If you've read "The Bro-Magnet," one of her more recent novels, about a guy whom other guys want to hang out with, you'll know EXACTLY what we're talking about!

Lauren was an independent bookseller and buyer for 11 years before deciding to take a chance on herself as a novelist. While trying to sell her books, she worked variously as a Publishers Weekly reviewer, a freelance editor, a (sort-of) librarian, and a window washer. Her first novel, "The Thin Pink Line," about a woman who fakes an entire pregnancy, was published by Red Dress Ink in 2003 as their own first-ever hardcover; it was also the first book from any Harlequin imprint to ever receive a starred Kirkus review. Since then, Lauren has had 23 more books published for adults, teens and children. The most recent are Book 8 in "The Sisters 8" series for young readers, which she created with her husband and daughter; the YA novel, "Little Women and Me;" and "The Bro-Magnet" and "Z: A Novel," both of which are adult novels published as e-books (available for $2.99 on Amazon).

Lauren has one copy of "The Thin Pink Line" to give to a lucky reader anywhere in the US.

Visit Lauren at her website, and her Facebook and Twitter pages.

Favorite TV show about friendship:
This is actually a really hard question! My first impulse was to say "Friends," for obvious reasons. Then I thought, hmm, but what about "The Big Bang Theory?" I'm a nerd so even though I'm not a hyper-intelligent nerd like the guys on the show are, it's probably the only place on TV I'd fit in. But then I rejected both and decided to go for - drum roll, please! - "I Love Lucy." Can you imagine having best friends forever like that? Living next door to each other and even traveling the world together? I'd love that.

Favorite best friend of a chick lit novel main character:
I'm going to go with David, the gay Israeli ex-fighter pilot who's the best friend of crazy Jane Taylor in my own first novel, "The Thin Pink Line." He sees who she is, warts and all - and Jane's got a lot of warts! - yet he loves her, fiercely.

Chick lit main character you'd want to be best friends with:
Bridget Jones. She'd be a good influence. I'd watch her keeping track of how many calories she consumes and what she weighs every day, and how at the end of the year there's almost no change in her weight. This would inspire me to abandon my decades-long battle with my own last 10 (or 20) pounds. Then I'd use all that extra time and energy to take over the world. Thank you, Bridget!

How did you meet your best friend?
I have two best friends. One I met outside a high school dance in 1977. I told her I felt like a peach - not that I felt like eating a peach, but that I literally was a peach. OK, maybe I'd been drinking. The other I met in 1987 when she came to work for the independent bookstore I was assistant manager of. So I've been friends with one for 35 years and the other for 25 years.

Friend you've known the longest:
See peach story above.

Three words to describe your best friend:
These three words describe both of them: smart, funny, beautiful.

Funniest thing you did with a friend:
This is as hard as that TV question! Does calling all over NJ to see if we could find Bruce Springsteen count?

Who would play your best friend in the movie of your life:
Jennifer Aniston. She looks like my peach friend.

Celebrity you'd like to have as your best friend:
Jon Stewart. He's smart and funny and he knows how to sell books.

Ever a time where you thought you knew a friend but it turned out you didn't know them at all?
More times than I'd care to think about. Now that's depressing. So let's end on a perkier note. Who here loves to read? I do, I do! Who here loves to write? I do, I do! And who here is grateful to Chick Lit Central for having her on today? Um, that would be me. Thank you!

Special thanks to Lauren for such a friendly chat and for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win "The Thin Pink Line":
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: Which chick lit character would you want as your best friend?
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. Please read our posting guidelines as well. (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 to edit their settings.

US only. Giveaway ends April 3rd at midnight EST.