Moose has been by my side even longer than I’ve been an author. My husband and I moved to Boston in August 2016 so I could attend the MFA program at Emerson College. There I would spend two and a half years working through fiction workshops and craft courses with the goal of changing careers—from copywriter to novelist.
We brought Moose home five days before Christmas in 2016, right after my first semester came to an end. We reasoned it would be easier to train a puppy while we were both working from home.
At the time, working from home meant working at my dining table, and, more often, on my couch. As you can see, Moose was never far away while I wrote my MFA thesis. This thesis would go on to become my debut novel, Darling Rose Gold.
As I was finishing my MFA, a new job for my husband led our little trio to London. Moose and I continued working from the couch but eventually upgraded to a real office—the critical room with a door that so many authors, myself included, crave!
Moose quickly rose to the rank of Office Manager, though it must be said that his work ethic is often found lacking. Fortunately for him, there are no other candidates for the job.
Once my agent had secured book deals for Rose Gold, it was time to promote the novel. Finally Moose began to earn his keep, as we realized readers would much rather look at his face than mine. He was invited to model in a photo shoot for a UK clothing brand (left) and even stood guard while I gave a speech at my launch party in London (right).
On top of his superior cheekbones, Moose is also an excellent traveler. I like to bring him with me wherever I can and was delighted to take him on a research trip this past November. This time we found ourselves in the English countryside, exploring the setting of my third book. Moose had more than one case of the zoomies when he realized how many pastures there were to sprint through and squirrels to antagonize. He did very little notetaking.
Moose loves to hike and explore, but at the end of the day, he’s a cuddler through and through. He’s happiest on my lap and makes an excellent stand for whatever book I’m reading. Writing is a far less lonely profession with this silly Cockapoo next to me.
Stephanie Wrobel grew up in Chicago but has been living in the UK for the last four years with her husband and her dog, Moose Barkwinkle. She has an MFA from Emerson College and has had short fiction published in Bellevue Literary Review. Before turning to fiction, she worked as a creative copywriter at various advertising agencies.
