By Nina Wu | The Examiner 

Emmy-award winning actress Patricia Heaton is best known for her current role as Debra Barone in the TV sitcom, "Everybody Loves Raymond." In her first book, "Motherhood and Hollywood," she writes about growing up in Cleveland, her tummy tuck, Hollywood marriages and being the mother of four boys. 

Nina Wu: Why did you write "Motherhood and Hollywood"? 

Patricia Heaton: It's a little bit in the genes because my brother is a journalist and my father was a sports writer. He was at the Cleveland Plain Dealer for 50 years. And I started as a journalism major at Ohio State, ended up in theater and I love to read. 

Q: You wanted to share the inside life of a Hollywood mom? 

A: It's sort of a perception vs. reality, Erma Bombeck-meets-Dennis Miller kind of a rant. And I think I have a perspective about Hollywood that you don't see very often in the press. 

Q: With four boys under 10, how do you do it all? 

A: First of all, I should have titled the book "Don't Feel Sorry For Me." We only work four days a week, we only work three weeks out of the month, and we get four months off for the summer. So there's plenty of time for me to spend with the kids. 

Q: How many elements of your real life as a mother do you bring to the role? 

A: A lot. I know the situations that we do every week are all ones that I encounter in my life or will encounter. 

Q: What is the best part of playing Debra Barone opposite Ray Romano in "Everybody Loves Raymond"? 

A: I'm always giving Ray (grief) about being annoying. But he's such a great guy. He's very talented, kind, generous and funny, as are the rest of the cast members. So it's a pleasure to go to work every day. Plus, the role of Debra is different from your typical housewife in that she lies, she's a bad cook, she has PMS, she's unreasonable like any woman. 

Q: When did you decide to become an actress? 

A: I've been singing and dancing since kindergarten. In second grade, I memorized the "My name is Barbra" Streisand album and sang it for the entire second grade. They had to keep kids after school so that I could finish the second side of the album. 

Q: What actresses inspired you? 

A: My first movies where I was really transfixed were Shirley Temple movies. And then, I think what really drew me in was Franco Zeffirelli's "Romeo and Juliet" with Olivia Hussey. I just was her for one whole summer. I grew my hair long and wore this hippie top.