Later Bloomer

Claire Cook: A Passport to Reinvention from the Late-Blooming Author of Must Love Dogs

At 50, after several careers, Claire Cook attended the premiere of Must Love Dogs, an adaptation of her second book. Here's her advice on beginning again.
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When do you know it’s that time? Time to tackle your dream. To sandwich it between kids, parents, home, work, the craziness of everyday life?

Conventional wisdom says if it’s important enough, you’ll make the time. Conventional wisdom doesn’t live in the 21st century.

But what about unconventional wisdom?

Unconventional wisdom sounds like Claire Cook, who, at age 45, wrote her first novel in a minivan parked outside her daughter’s 5:00 am swim sessions.

Procrastination Pays Off

That novel, Ready to Fall, sold to the first publisher who asked to read it. Luck, as they say, is where preparation meets opportunity.

I think the trick to avoid rejection might be to procrastinate for decades and skip all those awful stages!

Claire used much of her advance to promote the book. Her investment got her an agent at International Creative Management, who repped her next novel, Must Love Dogs.

Then, serendipity struck. Claire left several autographed copies at a bookstore display in Vermont. Gary David Goldberg (creator of Family Ties and Spin City) wandered by and bought one. He took it home, poured a glass of wine, settled in—and called Claire’s agent first thing the next morning.

At age 50, Claire Cook waltzed down the red carpet at the movie première of Must Love Dogs. Now she can add a few stories about John Cusack to her repertoire.

She didn’t just make time, she outclassed it.

Claire Cook's Passage to Your Next Chapter at LaterBloomer.comWallflower In Bloom

I just finished Claire’s latest book, Wallflower in Bloom. It’s the story of Deirdre Griffin, personal assistant to her brother Tag (a Tony Robbins-esque new age guru) who has no life beyond acting as her brother’s gatekeeper.

Then her sometime boyfriend says he’s marrying another woman because she’s having his baby—the one he told Deidre he never wanted. And by the way, Tag’s performing the ceremony.

After drowning her sorrows in a Ben & Jerry’s Triple Caramel Chunk and vodka milkshake, Deirdre hijacks Tag’s social media following (which she created) and gets herself voted onto Dancing With The Stars.

In Los Angeles, she experiences sore calves and spray-tanning, meets female contestants whose waists are smaller than her wrist, and finds her groove.

The spot-on characterization and affectionate send-up of the entertainment and self-help industries made it a lighthearted read that washed away the stress of a crazy week. I totally recommend it.

The inspiration for Wallflower In Bloom is a hoot. GalleyCat, a popular publishing blog, asked its Facebook readers which author they’d most like to see on Dancing With the Stars. Claire’s fans rallied behind her, and she beat Nora Roberts, Jodi Picoult, and David Sedaris to win.

Dancing With The Stars has yet to call, but Claire says she would do it, knees shaking, “Not just for me, but for midlife women everywhere.”

Passport To Your Midlife Reinvention

Today Claire has nine books behind her and almost as many lives, including bartender, advertising copywriter, radio station programmer, physical fitness instructor. She became a teacher at her kids’ school and stayed for sixteen years.

I loved all my previous jobs. There was always something creative in them. Even if you’re in a horrible job right now, it could pay off later.

Her novels are classified as “women’s books,” but she tackles universal themes—reinvention being the biggest. Here’s Claire’s “Passport To Your Next Chapter” from her novel Seven Year Switch:

1.  Self. You can’t have self-awareness until you decide to like yourself, and who you really are.

2.  Soul-Searching. Sometimes it’s getting quiet enough to figure out what you want; often it’s really digging for that buried dream you had before life got in the way.

3.  Serendipity. Stay open to surprises, throw routine out the window, and let spontaneity change your life.

4.  Synchronicity. Luck is where preparation meets opportunity.

5.  Strength. Life is tough. Decide to be tougher. If Plan A doesn’t work, the alphabet has 25 more letters. {Click to share this on Twitter!}

6.  Sisterhood. Connect and do something nice for someone. Karma is a boomerang.

Claire Cook has another piece of advice for late bloomers—pick one thing. The grass is always greener in front of the book you’re not writing.

Creative people are good at lots of things. But if you choose one and focus all your energy and creativity on it, you’ll go from good to better. I can’t tell you how many times an aspiring writer has told me about her partially completed drafts of two novels and three short stories, not to mention that screenplay, all of which she’s abandoned because she just got a great idea for a children’s book.

Claire Cook's Passage to Your Next Chapter at LaterBloomer.com
Author Claire Cook

I cover this in Why Are Some People Late Bloomers? Focus doesn’t mean giving up your passions.But Claire eventually channeled her various jobs into her characters, and you might need to find an unconventional outlet that blends your passions into your dream.

Claire Cook, however, proves don’t need to find the perfect desk to write that first novel, you don’t need to quit your day job to find happiness, and you don’t actually need to land on Dancing With The Stars to find your groove!

Do you have a piece of unconventional wisdom that’s helped you tackle a dream?  

Sources

  • Claire’s website and her excellent advice for writers (including photo credit)
  • Interview at Skirt.com
  • Interview at Literarily Speaking
  • SheReads.org: The Story Behind The Story (source is no longer online)
  • Opening Image: The South African Doornboom and Fingo Huts by late bloomer Marianne North (1882).

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