Mike Murphy, a celebrated author, made a remarkable entry into the literary world with his first book, Love Unfiltered, which graced the shelves in September 2014 and swiftly ascended to bestseller status. Beyond his prowess in writing, Murphy wears several hats: serving as an accomplished entrepreneur, coach, and consultant. His impressive repertoire extends to being the president and proprietor of the Oakland Automotive Group. In tribute to his late wife, he established the Love from Margot Foundation, a beacon of hope for under-insured, low-income women grappling with cancer. Through this foundation, he extends a helping hand in the form of financial support, educational resources, and tools for healing and recovery.
The boundless nature of love takes on a myriad of forms. But one of the most beautiful expressions lies in offering unwavering support to one’s partner during times of illness, infusing their life with vibrancy. In his book, Living in Color: A Love Story, In Sickness and In Health, Mike Murphy’s heartfelt narrative unfolds. It illustrates the profound love and dedication he exhibited throughout his partner Margot’s battle with cancer. This inspirational book serves as a guiding light for those navigating challenging phases in their own lives. In this interview, we aim to delve deeper into Mike Murphy’s wellspring of inspiration and the remarkable story he shares.
Tell us about your book.
It is a true story, the opening chapter is when my late Margot at age 37 was told, “Unfortunately your breast cancer has spread to your brain, without treatment you have 6 weeks to live, with treatment you have 6 months to live.” The book focuses on those 6 months with flashbacks of our amazing love story, somewhat like the book “The Notebook”. A large percentage of reviewers comment on the amazing love that existed. So, the book is a love story. It is also a powerful book about the reality of cancer and cancer treatment, and a powerful book for those that find themselves in the role of caretaker to a cancer patient. And for anyone afraid of death, many readers have told me that after reading Living in Color they no longer fear death!
Here is an excerpt from one review:
“I adored Margot so much because of her great strength. The manner in which she persisted in trying to recuperate fully. Although it didn’t appear that way and wasn’t easy for her, she was brave to endure the suffering and hold out hope for better outcomes. She managed to remain positive despite the severity of her condition. She wished to maintain her optimism, she was eager to live and to keep living. Great understanding and enlightenment. Regardless of Margot’s dark encounters, she was still Living in color. And then, the pictures and records put together by Mike were another amazing part of the book; beautiful memories of their past years spent together with friends, family, loved ones, and their pets. It’s also wonderful how he managed to keep all those records and find them.”
What is the PRIMARY benefit, above all others, that your potential reader will gain from reading this book?
Primarily it is a powerful love story! Here is an email I received just the other day:
Hi Mike,
Just read your book “Living In Color” on Kindle!
Wow! What a beautiful love story. I was brought to tears multiple times. My husband was very curious about what I was reading when he saw me crying. I shared with him some beautiful quotes from the book. Needless to say, we tried loving each other a little better today. Thanks for sharing your story!!
If you had to compare this book to any other book out there, which book would it be?
The Notebook
When Breathe Becomes Air
Tuesdays with Morrie
The Fault in our Stars
The movie Love Story with Ali McGraw and Ryan O’Neal
Hundreds of thousands of books come out every year. Why should someone buy THIS book?
It’s extremely raw, true, and transparent. It will make anyone cry while simultaneously making them laugh! And it will break open your heart so deeply that you will involuntarily learn to love deeper.
Here is just one of many powerful reviews:
“Must Read!
A story about a remarkable woman who faced the toughest of battles with grace, faith, and a smile.
A love story like no other, and one in which the love keeps coming long after his wife’s passing.
Only nine months into his unexpected love affair with, Margot, Murphy discovers a lump in her breast. For the next nine years she fights her cancer, armed with a fierce love for life. With him by her side through the good, the bad, and the worst, Margot shows her husband how to truly live.
Married to other people at the time, the Murphys’ relationship was sparked by a soul-deep sense of recognition when they first met. This powerful sense of knowing buoyed them as they faced the challenges required for them to be together and uplifted them as Margot faced one medical crisis after another.
Murphy tells the story of their relationship and Margot’s fight for her life with engaging warmth, honesty and unflinching detail. By doing so, he shows how a relationship can grow past the obstacles in its path thanks to love and the willingness to work toward emotional maturity. “I’m different because Margot, in life and in death, taught me the true meaning of love, which is compassion and forgiveness. I am a much better man,” he says.
This is not your typical Boy Meets Girl story, though that is part of it – so much so that the first couple of chapters read more like a romance novel than anything. This true story is about love, yes, but also about faith and spirituality and letting go. It is about a young woman with such strength and grace, fighting a battle no one should ever have to fight. It is about a man who not only stood by her side every step of the way, but later started a foundation to help low-income women with the financial expenses of fighting their own battles with cancer.
We all know at least one person who has had cancer, but we tend not to think about what that really means for them. You don’t want to think about it, we hear the words “cancer” and “radiation” and “chemotherapy,” but we rarely stop to think what that really entails. How it feels. What it looks like. Mike Murphy tells this story in real time, openly, honestly, and in such detail that we see it all, and it is the most horrifying yet uplifting thing I’ve ever read.
Aside from the deep emotions poured into the words themselves, there are pictures. You see Margot as she was when they met, walking her dog, at their wedding. And, in great contrast, we see pictures of her during the chemo, after the brain surgery, lying in a hospital bed with more wires hooked up to her than I can count. You see the X-Ray of her lungs, half filled with fluid as she struggles to breathe. You see the bottles filled with that yellow fluid, drained from her lungs. And though the cancer and the treatments changed her physically, the one thing that never changed was her smile.
I look at the pictures of this vibrant young woman (only thirty-seven), bald from chemotherapy, a port inserted into her brain, at times too weak to walk, having endured symptoms and procedures that go beyond any pain I can imagine, and I see her smiling in all of them.
Margot chose to live through all of it without fear, believing that we are more than our bodies, that her body was just the place that housed her spirit, and while her body may have been damaged and broken (not only by breast cancer, but then bone cancer, and lung cancer, and brain cancer. . .), her spirit was not. How does one smile through that? Well, in the words of this remarkably brave young lady, “You bend to the universe; it never bends to you.”
I believe this is a book that anyone with a loved one fighting cancer should read – if they want to truly understand what it is they’re going through. Told with such empathy and understanding, filled with takeaways and philosophical ideals about life and death and love, this is a book that will, once read, stay with you forever.” – Shannon Hovey
Who is your target audience?
Mostly women. But also, anyone that loves true stories, love stories, anyone dealing with cancer, or who is a caretaker to a cancer patient. Anyone that is afraid to die. The book has many benefits. Being extremely inspirational, a great read for people who love to feel a full range of emotions, to those who’d like to gain more courage and lose fear.
You will love deeper after reading this book.
Did your environment or upbringing play a major role in your writing and did you use it to your advantage?
No, but living through this experience forever changed my destiny and my heart and soul.
Tell us your most rewarding experience since publishing your work?
The amazing love and feedback that I have received from the readers. You can see all Amazon reviews here!
How would you describe your writing style?
Seamless, transparent, honest, real, raw, inspiring.
Are your characters pure fiction, or did you draw from people you know?
It is a true story.
Are you more of a character artist or a plot-driven writer?
Both.
What do you hope to accomplish with your book other than selling it?
Writing it greatly helped to heal my broken heart.
