Carlomagno, Mary

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Carlomagno, Mary

PERSONAL:

Married.

ADDRESSES:

Agent—c/o Andrea Barzvi, ICM Talent, 40 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer. Order (a firm specializing in clutter control), founder and owner. Has worked as a national events manager and director of sponsorships for Barnes and Noble and as a marketing manager for Bantam Doubleday Dell; tours as a professional speaker.

MEMBER:

National Association for Female Executives.

WRITINGS:

Give It Up! My Year of Learning to Live Better with Less (nonfiction), William Morrow (New York, NY), 2005

Contributor to magazines and newspapers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer, Figure, and the Washington Post.

SIDELIGHTS:

Mary Carlomagno describes an effort that changed her life and could help others change theirs in Give It Up! My Year of Learning to Live Better with Less. While employed as a bookselling executive, Carlomagno found her days overscheduled and stressful; at the same time, she felt emotionally unfulfilled. She decided to give up one habit each month for a year: drinking, shopping, newspaper reading, restaurant meals, eating chocolate. Her abstinence increased her self-awareness, led her to appreciate other, more basic pleasures, and helped her save money. As she picked up each habit again, she did so in moderation. Not only did the experience produce a book; it also spurred her to leave her corporate job and start a company, Order, that helps people simplify their lives. She also got married and bought her first house. "I had finally learned how to change a little at a time, which prepared me for the ultimate makeover," she related in an article for the Web site Beliefnet.

Some reviewers found Carlomagno's book well-written and thought it would help readers improve their lives. Give It Up! is "inspirational and thought-provoking," commented Deborah Bigelow in the Library Journal. A Publishers Weekly reviewer called the book "entertaining." Alison Hood, writing for the online publication BookPage, remarked that Carlomagno's "wry, honest account" will be useful to all who wish "to live a less cluttered life."