Sheila Roberts is the author of The Man Next Door, which is out now.
USA Today and Publishers Weekly bestselling author Sheila Roberts has almost fifty books to her name. To date, she has seen over three million books sold both at home and abroad. Several of her books have been adapted for film by Hallmark, Lifetime, and GAF, including her holiday perennial, On Strike for Christmas, The Nine Lives of Christmas, with a sequel The Nine Kittens of Christmas, and most recently, Christmas on Candy Cane Lane.
Before settling into her writing career, Sheila owned a singing telegram company and played in a band. When she’s not traveling, she splits her time between the Pacific Northwest and Southern California.
The Man Next Door is about a recently broke divorcee who moves in with her house-bound mother only to spend their days spying on her grumpy, mysterious, and sexy new neighbor.
Let’s get to know Sheila as she talks favorite books, inspiration behind The Man Next Door, her TBR and more!
What are some of your favorite books?
Jane Austen has to top the list, with Pride and Prejudice and Emma. Other favorite reads include The Help by Kathryn Stockett, The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley by Courtney Walsh and John Grisham’s The Firm. (I am a Grisham junkie and love all of his books but that one is still my favorite.)
When did you know you wanted to become an author?
That’s difficult to answer, actually. I was writing stories as a child and short stories as a young adult, then magazine articles. I didn’t realize I wanted to officially be a writer until I came up with an idea for my first book (written a million years ago under a different name). I stumbled into my writing career but it was a happy stumble. So, you might say I’ve fallen and I don’t want to get up.
What inspired you to write The Man Next Door?
The classic movie Rear Window with James Stewart was my inspiration. I got to thinking about how most of us, at some time or other, spy on our neighbors. Get a little snoopy. I asked myself what if someone moved in next door to a mother and daughter, someone who looked like the perfect man for that daughter at first and then … didn’t? What if a mysterious woman arrived on the scene and soon after mother and daughter began to hear some very disturbing fighting going on next door? And then what if the woman disappeared? Under very questionable circumstances. Suddenly. Mr. Right is looking oh, so wrong. The book is a mix of mystery, romance, family relationships and life restarts. And, I hope, a lot of fun.
What was your favorite part or chapter to write?
I do have a fun scene that lightens a dramatic conflict with some comedy. All I can say about that scene is, don’t go too near the pool.
What are you working on next?
I’m excited about my upcoming summer read, Love on the Shelf, which involves a battle of the sexes between a disillusioned sports talk show host turned shock jock who has decided romance novels are a threat to society and the owner of a romance bookstore, who is determined to defend the books he loves to hate.
What are you currently reading and what’s on your TBR (to be read) list?
I am currently reading A Merry Little Lie by Sarah Morgan and Let Them by Mel Robbins. Next in line is The Twelve Dates of Christmas by Jenny Bayliss, followed by Ina Garten’s memoir, Be Ready When Luck Happens, which I’ve been wanting forever and just found on sale on Amazon. (Happy holidays to me!) Of course, that’s just the top of the pile. I’m sure that’s the case with all of us. But isn’t it wonderful how many books we have to choose from! Books are one of the best investments we can make and I’m grateful to the writers who write them and also grateful to those readers who make it possible for me to write mine.
