Like many women, author Jessica Turner has a full plate. As a wife and mother who works full time and runs a blog, she manages numerous responsibilities. Yet somehow she still finds time to care for herself and pursue her hobbies. Often women ask how she does it all.

Turner’s answer is that she’s not really doing it all. She mentions her dusty mantel and laundry piles and admits she actually lets a lot of things go—for good reasons.

In The Fringe Hours (9780800723484, $14.99) she shows women how to prioritize their activities and use slivers of time already present in their days to practice self-care and to do the things they love. Revell (Baker Publishing Group) releases The Fringe Hours Feb. 17.

Turner is founder of the lifestyle blog The Mom Creative and a founding member of DaySpring’s (in)courage community.

“As women, we are really good at juggling a lot. … But all too often, the one thing we don’t make time for in our busy days is ourselves,” she writes.

For The Fringe Hours, Turner surveyed more than 2,000 women and conducted dozens of one-on-one interviews, asking women how they spend their time and how they wish they could spend it. The responses revealed common threads, including an elusive pursuit of balance and the pressure of expectations.

Turner first addresses obstacles such experiencing guilt and wrongly thinking one must do it all. She observes that busyness is a celebrated lifestyle, yet over-activity and neglect of self-care are detrimental.

To help women say no to activities, she reminds, “Just because something is a good thing doesn’t mean it is good for this moment in your life.”

Turner then shows readers how to find pieces of time that often go underused.

“The goal of using your fringe hours well is to take time to do something that rejuvenates your soul,” she writes.

She believes that this lifestyle also benefit others in a woman’s life.

Turner’s book is intended for women in any life season. Questions are interspersed throughout the text. Infographics from the survey data, as well as a “Fringe Hours Manifesto,” are included.

For more information or to order, visit bakerpublishinggroup.com.

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