LikeTheDew.com

Like some other readers and writers involved with Like the Dew, I knew Mary Kay Andrews before she was cool … or, at least, before she was Mary Kay Andrews.

She was a newspaper reporter back then but also was driven to write fiction, and, unlike many with those aspirations, she persevered until she was successful. Under her real name, Kathy Hogan Trocheck, she wrote 10 well-received mystery novels. Then she started the Mary Kay Andrews series, which has included the New York Times best-selling titles “Savannah Breeze” and “Blue Christmas,” as well as “Hissy Fit,” “Little Bitty Lies” and “Savannah Blues.”

Mary Kay deserves all the credit for her success. But she was fortunate enough to have a great mentor and an even better friend who encouraged her to be the writer she wanted to be — someone I also feel tremendous respect for —  the late Atlanta Constitution columnist Celestine Sibley.

A Florida native who has lived in Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia, Mary Kay is a founding contributor to Like the Dew who now divides her time between Avondale Estates, just outside the city of Atlanta, and Tybee Island on the Georgia coast. The fact that she recently bought and fixed up the Tybee place just might have something to do with the title of her latest novel, “The Fixer Upper.” It’s set in the fictional town of Guthrie, Ga., and, yes, involves fixing up an old house, in this case a fading Victorian mansion. As her readers might expect, the book also involves other things — stuff happens after all — including pesky FBI agents.

Monday night, just before the official launch of “The Fixer Upper” on Tuesday, Mary Kay signed copies of the new book at Feast, a restaurant in Decatur.

I’m not sure if I heard her very well above all the din, but I feel pretty sure she said something like “Get me on the New York Times Bestseller list and I’ll buy you a pony.” So you read it here first (or second or third): Buy “The Fixer Upper,” and get a pony.

Ponies for everyone. Books, too.

Photos by Chrysis B. Graham

Top photo: Mary Kay Andrews signs her new novel.

Middle photo: Jennifer Hill congratulates Ms. Andrews on her new book.

Bottom photo: Martha W. Fagan and Carolyn Bregman enjoy the festivities at the Mary Kay Andrews book signing at Feast.

Mary Kay Andrews’ books:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/entity/Mary-Kay-Andrews/B001I9QCCM?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0

Mary Kay Andrews’ blog:
http://www.marykayandrews.com/blog/index.asp?id=home

Peach Buzz on Mary Kay Andrews:
http://www.ajc.com/services/content/printedition/2009/06/11/peachbuzz0611.html

1. Alice Murray says:

   June 23, 2009 at 9:16 am

   Terrific party! It was wonderful to see so many AJC friends come out to see Kathy and purchase her latest book! I can hardly wait to curl up in front of the air conditioner with my copy of “The Fixer Upper.” Every book from Kathy, a.k.a. Mary Kay, gets better and better. My daughter Katherine is on a campaign to convince Matthew McConaughey to star in a movie based on Kathy’s last book, “Deep Dish.” And she reports that she’s already on page 127 of “The Fixer Upper,” and says “it’s great.”

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2. Terri Evans says:

   June 23, 2009 at 9:24 am

   Congrats KT (and MKA, too)! Sorry we didn’t make it to the Feast fête-too tired from Charleston trip, but looking forward to getting “Fixed Up.” BTW, may I have a Shetland pony instead? I think they’re sooo cute, and might be better tolerated by Snoopy.

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