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In Guest Authors

Guest Post and Giveaway: Life and Love in the Office

I welcome best-selling author Margo Candela back!

Her novel, Good-Bye to All That received excellent reviews and was named the 2010 Best of L.A winner for Best Beach Read by Los Angeles Magazine.

Good-Bye to All That is the story of Raquel Azorian, 25, an executive assistant at Belmore Corporation, a Hollywood production and marketing company. Office politics and backstabbing lead to a humiliating breakdown for Raquel’s boss, Bert, and Raquel has to figure out how to save his career and, in the process, her own.

The book is an intelligent, witty, fast-paced, and surprisingly thoughtful story about one ambitious young woman’s foray into corporate life, and the lessons she learns, as a result of her experiences at Belmore.

Click here to read my review and Margo’s interview.

Life and Love in the Office

by

Margo Candela

I can’t claim to be an expert on any subject, but I am well versed on a few. One of these areas of minor expertise concerns romance at the office. I met the guy who would become the man I married at the office and got a crash course on how to and not to have a relationship among the cubicles.

While our connection was instant, I wasn’t looking to complicate my life. I filed him under “Friend” and decided to leave it at that. The funny thing about friends, especially ones who are kind, funny and generous with their time and attention, is that you want to hang out with them. Soon enough we went from grabbing lunch together to going out for dinner and seeing each other on weekends.

It got to be very “Pam and Jim” where it was clear there were feelings between us, but circumstances kept either of us from taking it to the next level. That we worked in adjacent cubicles was one big reason to keep things from getting complicated.

Our office, like most, ran on a steady stream of gossip and its nerve center was the copy room. This was where people gathered to dish out the latest on who was late on a project and why so-and-so hadn’t come in two days in a row. The last thing either of us wanted was to have our budding relationship turned into fodder for the insatiable office gossip machine. When whispers started, we decided to slow things down in and out of the office.

We went so far as to sit on opposite ends of the conference table during meetings and to not say much more than “hello” and “goodbye” during the course of the day. He took to eating his lunch at his desk and I lost my appetite all together. This of course turned chatter that we maybe liked each other into full blown speculation that we’d broken up. (It’s amazing how people are able to fill in the blanks with no real information to back up their theories.)

Naturally, people wanted to know what had happened between us. I’d answer with, “Nothing. Why do you ask?” As most people won’t admit they’re just prying, my non-answer had to be accepted.

Eventually, something juicer came along (a higher-up was going through a nasty divorce and wasn’t careful about closing his office door when he was on the phone with estranged wife). While I missed my friend, I eventually got my appetite back and we even stopped going out of our way to avoid each other. We were still careful, but having weathered the office romance gossip grinder seemed to bring us closer together even though we weren’t spending much time alone with each other.

Then, one day, I ran into him in the copy room where he was waiting for the machine behind the biggest gossip in the office. “Do you want to grab some lunch?” he asked. It took me less than a second to answer. “Sure.”

When speculation about us started up again, we didn’t deny or confirm, but together decided to find new jobs . . . in separate offices.

Meet Margo

Margo Candela
Margo Candela’s husband owes her six months . . . preferably on a tropical island sipping margaritas. The deal was, she had three years to write her first novel, Underneath It All, and find a publisher. She signed the book contract at 2 ½ years so she still has that six months coming to her. She’s been musing over a few brochures for Fuji.

Of course, Underneath It All wasn’t her first novel. Her first was a romance novel spoof she wrote at age 15 on an antique typewriter she paid $20 for — actually her mom paid $20. Sadly, Wenchhead and the Isle of Evil Men was never published. Do you think it was the title?

In between Wenchhead and the Isle of Evil Men and Goodbye to All That, Margo enjoyed a trip to magazine land where she wrote articles on everything from extreme sports to computer hardware to plushies (people who are sexually into stuffed animals). Shhh, don’t tell Margo’s mom about that last one. She might want the $20 or the antique typewriter back!

When not writing, Margo vacuums. It’s her secret solution to writer’s block and when she hits the Times bestseller list, Margo dreams of buying a Dyson DC 25 Animal. And shoes. Ask her the about the black heels on the cover of Goodbye to All That.

Margo born and raised in Northeast Los Angeles. She moved to San Francisco to attend college and ended up staying for a decade before moving back home in 2005. Her first three novels, More Than This (Touchstone, Aug. 2008), Life Over Easy (Kensington, Oct. 2007), and Underneath It All (Kensington, Jan. 2007) are set in San Francisco. More Than This was a Target stores Breakout Book and an American Association of Publishers national book club selection at Borders Books with Las Comadres. Good-bye To All That is her first novel set in Los Angeles and is the only novel picked by Los Angeles Magazine for its 2010 Best of L.A. list.

Enter to win a copy of Good-Bye to All That

Mandatory Entry: Comment on my review, telling me why you would like to read Good-Bye to All That. Make sure to include your email address (for notification purposes)!

Bonus Entries:

Leave a separate comment below for each bonus entry –

  • Tell us about your experience with life and love in the office/workplace. How did you handle the situation? Did it turn out well?
  • Follow me on Twitter — be sure to leave your Twitter name in the comment
  • Subscribe to Colloquium via RSS or Email and confirm your subscription
  • Tweet about this giveaway and leave the link to your tweet in a comment!
  • Post this giveaway on Facebook and leave the link to your post in a comment!

Esme at Chocolate & Croissants was selected at random and a copy of the book was sent to her.

Thank you, Margo!

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55 Comments

  3. Betty - Reflections with Coffee

    Ha ha about romance in the office/workplace. Aeons ago at the school I worked at, one teacher (male hunk) and the principal’s secretary (blonde female) were absent every Thursday. We knew they had traditional Wednesday night dates.

  7. Colleen Turner

    I have never personally had an office romance, but I have been privy to a few in my days. They don’t usually seem to work out very well. Only once did it seem to work out. This one person was dating her boss, so when it became evident she decided to quite her job as they would not be allowed to continue if he stayed her boss, and they have now been married for years!

    • Margo Candela

      My office romance worked out, but I’m glad we don’t work together anymore. It’s hard to keep things romantic when you have to see your other half that many hours of the day and then come home with them. Though, I guess, it would save with carpooling and such…

  9. Colleen Turner

    I am a Networked Blogs follower (Colleen Turner).

  11. Mona Garg

    I love books/movies/TV shows about office politics. This book sounds so good.

  15. Jack

    I already have (and read) Margo’s book, so I’ll forgo the contest entry. But I’d like to chime in on one of the bonus questions, if I may.

    I’ve been spectator to, beneficiary of, and one awful time the victim of, various office romances. I think many (if not most) workplaces are sources of stress and angst and people see in office romances some way to alleviate some of that pressure. If there’s someone in your worklife who can not only make your day pass easier by seeing him/her but can also commiserate with all the crap you put up with at work, that’s a powerful attractant.

    And then, of course, there’s the fun of watching office romances. Bonding with your co-workers, even if you’re not the one “bonding” with your co-worker (if you catch my drift), by watching others engage in a romance is almost as fun – and a lot less stressful than being involved yourself.

    My current squeeze was the secretary of my major’s department at college when I met her. So I guess it’s an office romance for her and a school romance for me. But we waited until summer break (I transferred to a four-year school that fall) before starting anything so AFAIK, there was no gossip.

  16. Tracy Sestili

    I can totally relate to this story. There’s an old saying, ‘don’t crap where you eat’ that my mother used to say. I didn’t quite get it at first. You would have thought that I would have learned the lesson after the first time, but no. It wasn’t until the third one that was really really bad that I vowed to heed her advice and never do that again. Thankfully, I met my husband outside of the office and I no longer work at either of the 2 places from my previous trysts.

  17. Pingback: West Of Mars — Win A Book! » Blog Archive » Good-Bye to All That by Margo Candela

  18. Susan Helene Gottfried

    No need to enter me, my friend. I’m dropping in to say thanks for the e-mail. I’ve got this posted at Win a Book for you.

  20. esme

    I think office love is a quick route to office chaos-I met my husband there-but I quickly found another job.

  21. esme

    Cococroissants is following on twitter-what type of law do you practice? I am also an active member of the State Bar.

  22. esme

    cococroissants

    life and live in the officehttps://www.jhsiess.com/2010/09/22/guest-post-and-giveaway-life-and-love-in-the-office/

  28. Sharon Walling (sharon54220)

    I personally haven’t had an office romance, but I do know people who have.
    This book really sounds good and I would love a chance to win it.

    sharon54220@gmail.com

  30. Ruthie B

    I recently retired from an elementary school as a K-1 teacher where the principal was having an affair with another teacher. Sadly neither are with us anymore.

    ruthiekb72@yahoo.com

  35. Judy

    I’m intrigued by the clever reveals.

    headlessfowl at jteers dot net

  36. Judy

    I’m following on twitter with @headlessfowl.

    headlessfowl at jteers dot net

  37. Judy

    I’m an old GFC follower as Headlessfowl.

    headlessfowl at jteers dot net

  38. felecia

    This looks like a great read. I would love to read it.

  41. Melissa

    I’ve had my eye on this book for a while and am definitely interested in reading it!
    Thanks!
    mbamster0720 at gmail dot com

  42. Melissa

    I’m subscribed through Google Reader. I’m not sure how to verify that.
    mbamster0720 at gmail dot com

  43. Melissa

    Never had workplace love. Some crushes perhaps? I know people who have married co-workers or bosses though. Most were pretty crazy situations.
    mbamster0720 at gmail dot com

  45. Jane

    I commented on your review post and said, “Sounds like a great read! I love chick lit with humor and a touch of romance. This sounds perfect for me!”
    jcottey at aol dot com

  46. Jane

    I follow on GFC as jcottey.
    jcottey at aol dot com

  47. Jane

    I’m following Colloquium on Facebook Networked Blogs (Jane Eileen).
    jcottey at aol dot com

  48. Wanda

    I would love to read the book because Margo is a writer which I aspire to be. Sounds like a great book! wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

  49. Wanda

    I’ve never had an experience with life and love in the office/workplace. wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

  50. Wanda

    I am now following through Google Friend Connect (Wanda Bergman) – wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

  51. Wanda

    I follow you on Twitter – @lemonslippers – wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

  52. Wanda

    I subscribe to Colloquium via email and also through the Google Reader RSS Feed. wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

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