A novel way to get organized
By LILLI KUZMA Contributor January 17, 2012 8:48PM
James V. O'Connor
Author and home organizer James V. O’Connor offers 10 tips to help you get and stay organized in 2012.
• Start with your most cluttered room or area.
• Work on it at least one hour each Saturday until it’s done.
• Ask family members to help; if they don’t, you make all decisions.
• Keep only what you need or love; toss or donate the rest.
• When in doubt, throw it out; you’ll never miss it.
• Keep related items together in a logical place.
• If things belong in another room that’s full, do that room next.
• Get shelves or bookcases to make use of air space.
• Train family members to put things back where they belong.
• When you buy something new, get rid of something old.
“We all have a certain amount of clutter in our lives,” said James V. O’Connor, of Lake Forest, “and people hire an organizer when they become overwhelmed.”
About eight years ago, O’Connor, a career public relations professional, decided to become a home organizer, and also wanted to write a self-help book on the topic. Combining these goals, he launched a business, Clutter Control, and started work on a novel, which was published last fall.
“I wanted to do something in addition to public relations, and I like physical work,” he said. “I thought I actually came up with the idea to help people organize their house, but then looked on the Internet and saw that there was already a national association for home organizers. There were also many books on the subject, so I decided to write a novel with a home organizer as the protagonist, to make it an interesting and entertaining mystery and romance which, in the process, would help people learn a little about what organizers do.”
Mystery tale
Another Man’s Treasure (Post Mortem Press) is indeed both a mystery and a romance, in which the protagonist is searching for both riches and love, in the setting of a classic Queen Anne house that hides much more than clumps of clutter. A quick read, the novel of 279 pages will appeal to adults who grew up loving Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys mysteries.
However, the romance is anything but juvenile, and the mystery involves issues more complex than merely finding a secret panel. O’Connor’s fluid style is heavy on dialogue, which is how he mainly reveals his characters and scenes. Another Man’s Treasure is very entertaining, a book that will make you smile, and one you will likely pass on to a friend.
With his business, Clutter Control, O’Connor deals with many kinds of people and different levels of clutter, and only occasionally has a “hoarder” situation. “With one, we went through several Dumpsters, and the client kept pulling things out,” he recalled.
O’Connor also noted that, “As a home organizer, I have to be non-judgmental and confidential. No one wants you to tell others what a messy home they have.”
Writing clan
“My family is a family of writers. We just all knew how to write really well. And this was ingrained at school, too.”
He’s also written about uncluttering your language. That was his first book, a nonfiction volume called Cuss Control, The Complete Book on How to Curb Your Cussing.
“Basically, my book isn’t about how to stop swearing,” O’Connor explained, “but how to control it, how to use your discretion about when and where to swear.”
O’Connor attributes his background in swearing to attending at Catholic schools. “Everything else we wanted to do was a mortal sin,” he pointed out.
For more information on James V. O’Connor and his books, visit www.jamesvoconnor.com and www.cluttercontrol.us. Another Man’s Treasure is also available at amazon.com.
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