Life after Tom Cruise: Katie Holmes ready for challenges

Katie Holmes doesn't want her failed marriage to Tom Cruise to define who she is.

The 35-year-old star wants to be known as an actress rather than the person who tied the knot with the Hollywood actor - who she divorced in July 2012 after six years of marriage - and admits she is "ready for new challenges" in her life.

She said: "I don't want that moment in my life to define me, to be who I am.

"I don't want that to be what I'm known as. I was an actor before, an actor during and an actor now.

"I don't have any fear now, I don't have a lot of rules for myself, and I don't take myself that seriously."

The former couple have eight-year-old daughter Suri together and while the raven-haired beauty loves to have playful tickle fights with the youngster, she also tries to instil some good manners into the little one.

Katie added to People magazine: "[Suri] means everything to me. I'm learning every day, and I have been since the minute I became a mom.

"My patience has grown, but between 4 and 6 pm, I mean, wow. Between tickle fights and glitter art, I try to throw in some manners along the way."

In August, Katie was reported to have swapped New York for California when she splashed out $3.8 million on a Los Angeles mansion in a bid to boost her Hollywood acting career.

The move was also thought to be beneficial for Suri because the pair's new abode is situated in an affluent cul-de-sac populated by many children the same age as the youngster.

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