Wednesday, November 4, 2020

Miranda Oh Interview - Just Breathe: Chin Up, Tits Out


Photo Content from Miranda Oh

Miranda Oh is your typical girl: She loves the sunset, loves long walks on the beach, world travels, and When not playing the corporate part she can be found sipping wine and spending all her hard-earned money on shoes.

Among her friends and family, Miranda Oh is known to be the storyteller of the group, always recapping crazy life stories and situations. Her personal experiences, emotions and fantasies are the inspiration for most of her books, so there is a little bit of her in every story.

        
   

What inspired you to pen your first novel? 
Life experiences and striving to be relatable, and find connection with other women trying to kick butt with life, but hitting road block after road block. 

Tell us your latest news. 
I am currently researching for my next book series. I am interviewing 100 women from around the world who suffer from Endometriosis. I was diagnosed in 2019, and made the decision to right a new series all about the struggles and consistent fight we have within our bodies, minds, and society. 

Who or what has influenced your writing, and in what way? 
My family has always encouraged me to share, express and lean on them. I have written about deeply personal stuff, and discussed hard topics, they have been nothing shy of overly supportive and wonderful. If I didn’t have them as a support group – I probably wouldn’t have been so keen to continue my writing career. 

Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published. 
Selling my book all over the world. When I started I thought it would reach throughout the prairies within Canada, and into the United States, but then I started to see sales happen over seas and way down south, I knew that I was doing something right then. 

What do you hope for readers to be thinking when they read your novel? 
“Hot dang!” as they flip the page into the wee hours of the night. I wanted to create something that was relatable to the average human, and also something that engulfed them and kept them engaged in the story until the books ended. 

In your newest book; JUST BREATHE: CHIN UP, TITS OUT (Book #3), can you tell my Book Nerd community a little about it.
I’d love to. For book #1 – imagine falling madly in love. Then for book # 2 – imagine losing that love in a very twisted dark way. For book # 3 – we strive for our main character Hadley to find love within again post tragedy. All while figuring out a career, family issues, and a new approach to a dating life. 

What was the single worst distraction that kept you from writing this book? 
That I had not figured out where I was in life enough to comfortably write about it. It took me the longest to write out book # 3 simply because through my life, and through some tragedy myself, I was struggling with self-love. Finally I was in the place to write it, and it for sure helped me get to a point of finally feeling some good deep love towards myself again. 

What part of Hadley did you enjoy writing the most? 
Refining her the way I wish I could refine myself. I spoke my truest self through Hadley, and then through editing and working with my team, we found ways to refine her and make her better for the reader and for the story. 

TEN FAVORITE GUY CHARACTERS FROM YOUR BOOKS, INCLDUING RANDOM FACTS ABOUT THEM.
  • 1. Sam – Hadley’s dad – he is probably the coolest, kindest open father a girl could ever ask for. You’ll see that sprinkled throughout the Chin Up Tits Out series. At the beginning of book # 3 – you see that loud and clear 
  • 2. Dre – A coworker – a little bugger that always had something up his sleeve ready to put a smile on Hadley’s face. 
  • 3. Dr. David – the Physiotherapist – quirky and eccentric is an understatement. He will make you realize why we should all be seeing a therapist to keep our minds balanced and healthy. 
  • 4. Ollie – a lifelong buddy from the opposite side of the world. Someone who never judges, who always has a smile on their face, and that smile just gets bigger and brighter when Hadley steps into the picture. 
  • 5. Pete – you asked me about the worst date ever. You MUST read this part of book #3. He lists out the possible reasons why the date goes wrong. 
  • 6. Bradi – a baby who changed love for Hadley. Hadley’s first nephew, gained through the most tragic of stories, but most importantly filled with so much love. 
  • 7. Anthony – can we say hypocrite! 
  • 8. El Jefe – Mister Spanish who sweeps Hadley off her feet in Vegas. Not without some next morning repercussions though. 
  • 9. Jared – Everyone’s dream man. Up front, honest, kind and rubs your feet. 
  • 10. RJ – Hadley’s equal when it came to future expectations, sassiness, and downright having fun. 
What’s the most ridiculous fact you know? 
That rabbit’s gestational period is roughly a month. That is why the saying is referenced as “they’re going at it like rabbits” is a thing. It’s also why there is a ton of rabbits out there, always. 

What is the weirdest thing you have seen in someone else’s home? 
A fully mirrored bathroom. Floor, walls and ceiling. When I peed, I was memorized and couldn’t keep my eyes still. I wonder what sparked the thought of having a fully mirrored bathroom. I never asked. 

Best date you've ever had? 
How funny is this – the worst date I’ve had comes to mind easy peasy. The best date though, took some thinking. I have had plenty of really wonderful dates, and the “best” factor of them has changed over the years. When I was recently separated going through a divorce – my first date with a nice chivalrous person was amazing, it was new, and I felt all the feels. Now, my dates with my partner consist of grocery shopping followed by digging up and experiencing the newest fried chicken joints in our city. I swear both of them have their perks and are both the best in my eyes. I was just in different spaces in different times within my life. 

If you could go back in time to one point in your life, where would you go? 
My family trip to Dominican Republic. By far one of my most favorite 10 days with the family. Fun in the sun, endless rum, beaches for miles and the best resort crew a family could ask for. 

What are 4 things you never leave home without? 
  • Saying goodbye to whomever I left in my house. 
  • A pair of shoes that match whatever outfit I am wearing 
  • More layers than I need, because you never know when you’ll get cold 
  • Sometimes I will leave the house without my cell phone, but if I am driving somewhere or going for a long walk or run, I will be sure to always have a fully charged battery. 
Choose a unique item from your wallet and explain why you carry it around. 
A tarot card I got from a cool cocktail lounge in Detroit Michigan. It is the Goddess, I carry it around for good fortune, self-love and to remind myself how much of a goddess I truly am. Dorky I know. 

Which incident in your life that totally changed the way you think today? 
Getting diagnosed with Endometriosis. It was extremely hard not to fall into the victim mentality, “why did this have to happen to me?” But as a good author friend of mine, Aussie Liz Butcher says, “Take a cup of concrete and harden the eff up”. This diagnosis was an opportunity for me to do exactly that, and through a lot of hard work, it changed my entire life and way of thinking. 

What is one unique thing are you afraid of? 
Not being true to who I am, and lying to myself. That to me is my biggest fear. Sometime we find ourselves lying to others to make them like us, or to lessen the blow of something hard to handle. Which in turn can lead into lying to yourself. I feel that it is the biggest mistake and taker of time when we can choose to do to ourselves. 

What was the best memory you ever had as a writer? 
My second book launch was HUGE. I filled up a large book store with hundreds of people. I made people laugh, cry and everything in between. I flew on cloud 9 that entire night. I will never forget how amazing I felt after accomplishing that.

Where can readers find you? 
They can find me on Twitter, IG and Facebook at Miranda Oh or #chinuptits out. You can also reach me on my website at www.mirandaoh.com 

YOUR FAVORITE QUOTES/SCENES FROM JUST BREATHE: CHIN UP, TITS OUT 
All things come in threes. So I have chosen three parts to share with you. 

1. The most interesting date – sneak peek. 
    a. “You didn’t put the whole piece of sushi in your mouth, is that because you are afraid of looking like a pig at the table?” 
    i. This among a bunch of other wonderfully awkward questions were asked by Hadley’s date. 

2. When my cousin found her Vegas muse. 
    a. “Hadley meet British Crumpet, and his two buddies, Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee. They’re from London and here for the week. How Exciting!” Christie squealed, completely enamored with her sexy British crumpet. I really never caught their names that night over the music, nor did it really mater. Neither of the hobbit friends were tickling my fancy. 
    i. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas…right? 

3. An ending note for all! 
    a. Love is enough. It won’t be easy, and it will be messy and most of all confusing. But always trust your gut, follow your heart and be kind to yourself and to others. Together we are always better, and despite how scary it may be to be real with the ones you love, being real with them will take your relationships and your life to places you could never imagine. 
    i. At the end of the day, always believe that love is enough. It starts within ourselves, by loving ourselves first, then it will grow and manifest into big beautiful loves throughout your life.


Continuing the saga of Hadley, recently divorced and wending her way down the path of life in anticipation of her rapidly approaching 30th birthday as a single woman. Testing waters and wantonly accepting new and exhilarating scenarios, Hadley wisely chooses each path carefully before diving into the quagmire which is life. A humorous, oft times sexy, look at life from a young woman's standpoint, readers will laugh out loud at some scenarios, cry at others and knowingly shake their heads at still others.

You can purchase Just Breathe: Chin Up, Tits Out at the following Retailer

And now, The Giveaways.
Thank you MIRANDA OH for making this giveaway possible.
Winner will receive a Copy of Just Breathe: Chin Up, Tits Out by Miranda Oh.
jbnpastinterviews

3 comments: