Writer, in residence

LAKEVILLE — Helen Klein Ross’s graciousness belies her seemingly inexhaustible energy. To accomplish what she has in the past few years — advertising creative director, home restorer, blogger and now published author — she must be an on-the-go, nonstop sort of person. And yet, for a Sunday morning interview, she answered the door barefoot (toenails painted red) and curled up on a sofa in front of a cozy fire to talk about her latest project.Many readers of The Lake­ville Journal will be familiar with Klein Ross through her well-documented efforts restoring Holleywood, the house she and her husband, Donald Ross, just spent two-plus years renovating. (For some of the history of their work, described in The Journal, go to www.tricornernews.com.) Turns out that, all the while, she was also working on a book, a novel, which has just been published by Simon & Schuster as an e-book. “Making It” is a story set in the advertising world. Klein Ross is writing about what she knows. She spent more than two decades in advertising, first as a secretary (shades of Peggy Olson in “Mad Men”) and then as a copywriter, before being promoted to creative director. She’s worked at some of the largest and best-known ad agencies in the world including Chiat Day, Ogilvy & Mather and Grey (and the list goes on). “I love advertising,” she said. “I think it is the most fun you could have in business. It’s the people. It’s their dreams, hopes, loves.” And she’s brought that world to life in her book. Very successfully. This novel is a page turner — though perhaps that is not the appropriate expression, for a work of fiction that you read on the screen of a computer or another electronic device.Klein Ross still works in advertising, as a freelancer, or (as she refers to herself) as a migrant worker. She needs to leave time for what has always been a passion but is now a vocation: writing books. She also tweets and blogs. Klein Ross has been a presence on social media sites since the early days. She has a blog about the advertising world (www.adbroad.com) and one about restoring Holleywood (www.bringingbackholleywood.com). She can befound on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bettydraper (named for the character on “Mad Men”). Her comfort level with the e-world has allowed her to include an interesting element in her book: an interactive epilogue. Links at the end of the book will tell readers “What happened next?” for each character. This hasn’t been done in adult fiction, Klein Ross noted. Though it’s been done before with children’s books. She also brought her talents as a creative director into play by designing web pages for each of the characters. Of course the question of “What next?” also applies to Klein Ross. When Simon & Schuster bought “Making It” the venerable publishing house also bought a second book, which she must deliver by August. It will be published in hardcover and as an e-book. So, is writing 60 seconds of ad copy, or tweeting or blogging, an obvious way to transition to a full-length novel? “No,” Klein Ross said. “The first agent I submitted it to said, ‘Beautiful writing. But where is the story?’ I had to learn what people look for in a novel — which is characterizations. I had to learn to go deeper into the story.”She has had some guidance in her quest. About 10 years ago, Klein Ross earned her master of fine arts degree in literature from New York’s New School, and she’s had several writing mentors.The house has also turned out to be lucky. “A lot of good things happened after we bought Holleywood. It’s brought me good karma.” So, she’ll retreat to her writing studio in the tower at Holleywood to finish her second novel, a story about a woman who does something heinous and gets away with it. Which is not Klein Ross’s story at all.“Making It” is available as an e-book at www.amazon.com and all major online booksellers.