SweetSpot: Now and Then

Spring 1999, California.

Call it middle-age madness or a midlife crisis, but SweetSpot: Now and Then chronicles one pivotal year in the life of Darlene Robinson, a woman grappling with hot flashes and the weight of being raised as a God-fearing good girl. She followed the rules… until she couldn’t anymore.

Just days before leaving for her first writers’ conference, Darlene makes a bold declaration to the man she married as a teenager: she wants out. Concerned for her mental health, she can no longer pretend to be the dutiful wife of a man who seems indifferent to her presence. Little did she know that the conference, her mother’s sudden illness, and meeting Clive Charles would all play a part in reshaping her life.

Back then, Darlene chronicled her transformative year shortly after living through it. Now, with time and experience, her "other self" offers a new perspective, adding depth to the story as only time can.

Call it what you will, but shifting one’s life in midlife is a journey many face, and Darlene believes SweetSpot: Now and Then will resonate deeply with readers.

Marla Miller, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, segued into freelance writing during her children’s wonder years. Miller wrote for lifestyle magazines and became a founding editor-in-chief of one distributed along the ‘orange coast’ of California. Her first book, nonfiction, was published by Simon & Schuster. Her first novel, Deadly Little Secrets, was published in 2013. She teaches at writers’ conferences, including the Santa Barbara Writers Conference, where she found her literary voice. SweetSpot: Now and Then was born there, so paying homage to S.B.W.C. founders Barnaby & Mary Conrad seems only right.