Monday, March 23, 2015

Blog Tour/Guest Post: Covering Home by Heidi McCahan


A themed tour through Prism Book Tours.

Covering HomeCovering Home
Heidi McCahan
Adult Inspirational Contemporary Romance
Paperback & ebook, 310 Pages
January 18th 2015 by Snug Corner Cove Press




On assignment in Japan, television personality turned sportscaster Britt Bowen is determined to land an interview with the most reclusive pitcher in baseball and prove she can succeed in a demanding profession. A relationship with a self-absorbed professional athlete is the last thing Britt needs. 

Shunning all media attention, former All-Star pitcher Caleb Scott is focused on rebuilding his career in Japan, far from his past and the horrible tragedy that nearly ruined him. Then he meets Britt, who is everything he vowed to avoid. 

But it doesn’t take long before Caleb is battling his attraction toward Britt. While she works to uncover his secrets, she can’t deny she’s drawn to his wounded soul. At a crossroads, Caleb must decide if he can break free from his past mistakes and give love another chance. And Britt must choose between advancing her career … or falling in love.

Amazon

Five Reasons Why I Wouldn’t Want to Be a Female Sportscaster

In Covering Home, the heroine, Britt Bowen is a television personality turned sportscaster. While it is her dream job, she faces a few challenges, which also happen to impact her personal life. Based on the research I conducted to write this novel, here are five reasons why I feel it would be a difficult profession.

1. A demanding travel schedule. While I’d enjoy seeing new places and watching sports for a living, the frequent travel would become grueling and monotonous. One female sportscaster I follow on social media covers college football and she flew sixty-four times in six months (most of those included her infant daughter).

2. Appearance trumps all. Women have made great strides in broadcasting, thanks to a handful of brave pioneers willing to blaze a trail in a difficult, male-dominated profession. I still think there’s a double-standard regarding physical appearance. Female sportscasters have to look flawless (for a mostly male viewing audience), while male sportscasters are valued for their knowledge and previous experience. Male sportscasters can have bad hair and carry a little extra weight, but if they have a proven record of success on the field, nobody breathes a word of criticism.

3. Critical yet cowardly audience: social media makes it possible for people to say anything they want. One’s platform is well-regarded if it has a significant following and it seems almost expected that famous people are accessible via Twitter, Instagram, etc. Yet the rude, crude and disrespectful comments some direct at female sportscasters is appalling. Worse, those launching the cruelest insults hide behind the anonymity of their social media profile.

4. A lot of hard work and preparation for limited time on-camera. Women can commentate for events with a significant female viewing audience: gymnastics and professional tennis, for example. But women aren’t allowed to call the play-by-play for professional football or baseball on televised games. They get a 30 second interview with a player or coach on their way to the locker room at halftime, or maybe a brief appearance on camera in the seventh inning from the dugout steps. Like I said, huge progress has been made, but there’s still a long way to go before men and women are regarded equally in this profession.

5. Difficult to balance personal and professional life. Every woman struggles with fulfilling her responsibilities at work while making time for people she loves and cares about apart from her job. Female sportscasters face an uphill battle, as well. They aren’t supposed to date the athletes in the sports they cover because that undermines her credibility as an unbiased reporter. Yet who else but a professional athlete is going to empathize with the demands of the job? Family planning, maternity leave, childcare … all huge hurdles. I applaud the many female sportscasters who do their job and raise a family.


Heidi McCahanHeidi McCahan is a Pacific Northwest girl at heart. She spent her formative years in Alaska, where her unique upbringing, coupled with Alaska's breathtaking scenery, fueled her active imagination and loosely inspired her debut novel, Unraveled

Heidi graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Sports Medicine from Whitworth University and a Master's Degree in Athletic Training from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. After a brief career as a Certified Athletic Trainer, Heidi married her husband, Steve. They currently live in North Carolina with their three boys. 

When Heidi isn't stepping on Legos, chauffeuring the boys around suburbia or watching one of their many sporting events, she loves to read and write heartwarming romance.



- US Grand Prize: Birchbox 3-month subscription ($30 value) & signed paperback of Covering Home (US Only)

- Gift Card Grand Prize: $20 Gift Card for Amazon/iTunes/B&N (winner's choice) & an ebook of Covering Home (open internationally)

- Ends April 7th

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2 comments:

Unknown said...

I would not want to be a sports caster, but that's is because I don't like sports. Now, I wouldn't mind meeting all the athletes, but just for fun, not to interview! I would just like to follow one around one day to see what their lives are "really" like :)

Mary Preston said...

This does sound like a lovely read.

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