Squawk Radio

Debbie Macomber is the most successful author I know well. She writes wonderful books that touch the human spirit and understand the human heart, and at the same time she's a shrewd businesswoman who has survived the publishing whirlpool which has sucked so many other authors down. She is ruthless about promoting her books (go to her website and check out her Debbie Macomber store with totebags, t-shirts, coffee mugs, coffees and teas!) and at the same time is one of the kindest people I know.

Ten years ago, my husband and I had to come to Seattle from Houston because my brother-in-law had lymphoma, needed a bone marrow transplant and Scott was the donor. In the hospital, Scott went into the operating room and was put under while the surgical team removed a quart of bone marrow from his hips. It was an all-day affair and I was worried about him and my brother-in-law and didn't know what to do in a strange city by myself. Debbie and I knew each other, but not well, yet when I told her about it, she invited me to meet her. She took the day off and drove me to the bookstores in the area, introduced me to the managers and we signed books. This at a time when she was writing SIX books a year and every day counted! But I've never forgotten how kind she was and I'm sure that her prayers, as well as my husband's bone marrow, helped my brother-in-law completely recover from his cancer.

How does Debbie do everything -- write, manage her office and staff, handle her publicity, be a mother, grandmother and wife, and be a friend to so many people? Down the page, Teresa asked Debbie to talk about how she uses motivation and goals to chart her course successfully in publishing (and in life!) and that's because we Squawkers know Debbie is the living proof that positive thinking works. That's what we all want to hear, Debbie, and you promised us you would blog about how career planning and goal setting has worked for you. Talk to us!