In “Just Let Me Lie Down: Necessary Terms for the Half-Insane Working Mom,” Kristin van Ogtrop uses her own busy, yet fulfilling life (she’s the editor of Real Simple magazine, as well as mother to three children) to devise a hilarious book full of terminology any working mother will understand.
With your busy life, how did you come to write a book?
The book grew out of a blog I do on RealSimple.com called Adventures in Chaos. I would keep getting these two consistent comments: You make me laugh, and you make me feel normal. I wanted to target it to women like me, those who are happy and fulfilled but totally overwhelmed.
The setup is interesting; how did you decide to write a lexicon?
I thought it would enable women not to have to roll up their sleeves and read it. They can dip in and out. I realize how time-pressed the audience is.
Do you ever worry that readers of Real Simple — a magazine that presents stylish organizational tips — will be dismayed to learn its editor is so harried?
In my editor’s letter every week, I relate it to my own life, and I make it very clear that I’m the woman that I represent in the book.
Did you ever think that your children would be your creative muse?
I’ve always wanted to write a book, I just never thought it would happen. It was a dream I kind of let go 20 years ago when my career became more interesting.
