As a lifelong appreciator of Edgar Allan Poe's work, actress Rose McGowan jumped at the chance to co-star in writer-director John LaTier's feature-length adaptation of "The Tell-Tale Heart." But she might get more than artistic fulfillment out of the project.

She might also get a new home.

"Actually, I was looking at some property today," the actress ("Charmed," "Grindhouse") said late last week from the New Orleans set. "You know, I'm on that fence right now in life, and I might throw myself over to New Orleans."

McGowan has always been a fan of the city, she said. Even before playing Ann-Margret in the Golden Globe-winning mini-series "Elvis" for CBS, which was shot in town in 2005, she saved up her cash as a 19-year-old and came down for a solo visit -- just because it was always something she wanted to do.

This time, though, it might be more than just a visit.

"I'm kind of at this strange crossroads in my life. I'm trying to figure out where I want to be," McGowan said. "And I love Los Angeles in the sense that I love my friends there and I love my life there, but the business 24-7 just grinds on you. There's no escape for you. I notice that my self-esteem and my general sense of well-being is much higher when I'm not there, and it's sort of sad to live your life somewhere that makes you sad."

New Orleans, on the other hand, with its deeply ingrained eccentricities and its slower pace of life is appealing to the actress. "I think it's the mix of it all," she said. "New Orleans is a whole grab-bag of great."

And something not so great? That McGowan had to leave New Orleans just before Halloween weekend to do publicity in Los Angeles for another project, the Lifetime movie "The Pastor's Wife."

"You don't even know how sad this is for me," she said. "Because last year I was supposed to be here for Halloween, and I had a custom-made (Marie Antoinette) gown and wig and all this stuff -- spent $4,000. It was so stunning. And then the trip got cancelled at the last minute, and it's such a downer just wearing it in L.A."

But maybe McGowan-as-Marie-Antoinette will soon be able to lassez le bon temps rouler in New Orleans, as intended.

"It's still there, waiting to be resurrected at my house. But you know, New Orleans is the kind of place where I could just wear that on any Tuesday or Wednesday and I'd be just fine."

"The Tell-Tale Heart," directed by John La Tier and starring Patrick John Flueger and Peter Bogdanovich, will continue shooting through Nov. 10. It is eyeing a 2012 release date.