Mary Higgins Clark - Later Life

Later Life

Higgins Clark dated throughout her widowhood. She was married to Raymond Ploetz from 1978 to 1986, an experience she describes as a "disastrous" marriage. In 1996, she remarried again, to John J. Conheeney, the retired CEO of Merrill Lynch Futures, after they were introduced by her daughter, Patty. The couple live in Saddle River, New Jersey and also have homes in Manhattan; Spring Lake, New Jersey; and Dennis, Massachusetts.

In 1981, Higgins Clark happened to be in Washington, D.C. the day President Ronald Reagan was shot. Because she had a press pass she was able to join the media waiting to hear the President's prognosis. When the doctor finally arrived to start the press conference, Higgins Clark was one of the few people chosen to ask a question.

Before beginning the actual writing of her books, Higgins Clark prefers to develop an outline and perhaps detailed character biographies. Each chapter is continuously revised as she writes, so that when she is ready to move on to the next chapter, the current chapter is considered done and is sent directly to her editor. By the time the editor receives the last chapter, the book is primarily done.

Creativity abounds in Higgins Clark's office, a tower-like room featuring skylights and windows, located on the third floor of her house. Every morning after a light breakfast, Higgins Clark arrives in her office around 8 a.m. and works until about 2 pm, unless she is near the end of her book, when she might extend her schedule to work up to 17 hours per day. Once a year Higgins Clark lectures on a cruise ship, allowing her to travel and to do some writing in a more novel location.

Her hair and makeup artist is Karem Alsina, who is often credited in her novels.