MELISSA MAYHUE
MELISSA MAYHUE began her writing career in 2005 after a vacation to Scotland and a hike on the Black Isle inspired her with the perfect setting for the characters running around in her head. Her resulting debut novel, THIRTY NIGHTS WITH A HIGHLAND HUSBAND, won the Holt Medallion and Book Buyers Best awards in 2008 and made the finals of the Colorado Book Awards.
Since then, her imaginary world of Faeries and Mortals has continued to grow. A HIGHLANDER’S DESTINY, fifth book in her award-winning Daughters of the Glen series from Pocket Books, hits shelves on December 29, 2009 with A HIGHLANDER’S HOMECOMING slated for January 26, 2010.
Married and the mother of three sons, Melissa lives in beautiful Colorado with her family and menagerie of pets.
Please start off by telling us about yourself; where you were born, where you are now.
I was born in Texas and I currently live about an hour north of Denver, Colorado.
Is there anything about your life that would surprise most people?
Not really. I think I’m a fairly low-key person. :)
Please tell us about the stories you write.
I write a paranormal time-travel series set in our world with a twist… Faeries exist. And these aren’t your basic Disney Faeries, by any stretch.
The underlying premises of the world is that long ago, Mortal and Fae coexisted in one place, but when their worlds were split, Magic was stripped from the Mortal world. In the ages since, the Fae have used Man’s world as a penal dumping ground for their rejects.
Now, Magic is returning, but not to the Fae stranded in the Mortal world. Instead, it’s in the hands of their half mortal descendents.
What are some of the ups and downs you have encountered before becoming published?
I’ve been incredibly lucky in my writing career. I had only a few rejections prior to selling my first book – and those were apparently because I must write the world’s worst query letters since the people who rejected me never got beyond the query!
What do you think is the key to a memorable romantic story?
I believe the most important aspect of a memorable romantic story is characters who connect – both with each other and with the reader. The reader has to be able to FEEL the characters’ emotions and really WANT those two to get together in the end.
Where do you get your story ideas?
I wish I knew so I could look there when I’m coming up blank! They just happen. Once I know my characters and their problems, I start writing and their story unfolds.
Which of your books has been your most favorite to write?
I think the first one [THIRTY NIGHTS WITH A HIGHLAND HUSBAND] was the most FUN to write because I wrote it before I knew anything about publishing or had any idea about writing to a deadline!! :)
Which character have you had the most fun creating?
I love all my characters and I’ve enjoyed the process of each and every one of them coming to life. But fun? Without a doubt, the most fun would have to be the High General of the Faerie Realm, Dallyn Aĺ Lyre. I love it when he makes an appearance in one of the books. First off, he’s a full-blood Fae, so he rarely says exactly what he means straight out. And the one thing I’ve learned about him is that he doesn’t do anything without a reason. I’m looking forward to writing his book one day, but I can’t until I know more about his story!
Which character have you had the hardest time creating?
Villains are apparently the hardest for me. I’ve had more than one who started out with me intending they’d be the “bad guy” only to learn as I wrote them; they just didn’t WANT to be bad! [That’s not to say they mind being ‘bad boys’…they don’t. They just didn’t want to be the ‘bad guy!’] J Interestingly enough, I’ve “met” lots of new characters that way!
How many hours a week do you spend writing?
I write every day. Now, some days that may mean 5 or 6 hours of actual writing/editing and some days that may mean an hour or two of staring out the window [and sneaking online to read Twitter or play spider solitaire] with very few new words ending up on the page.
What challenges do you face in your writing endeavors?
The same ones every other writer faces – time, motivation, deadlines, family and friends who think that because I’m home, I can’t possibly be too busy to do whatever they ask me to whenever they ask!
Agents; are they worth the time and energy it takes to secure one?
YES!! But let me qualify that by saying the RIGHT agent is definitely worth any effort. How do you know the right one? That’s the hard part because each of us wants different things from our agent. Obviously, we all want an agent who has contacts at the houses we want to write for and one who knows more about the business than we do and who can help guide our career.
I’d say in addition to that, you want to search for someone who ‘gets’ your writing [so they’ll be enthusiastic about it when they’re trying to sell it!], and who you feel comfortable talking to about your goals and your work.
First draft to publication, how long did it take to sign with a top NY publisher? Did you achieve this on your own or did an agent push it through?
Seven months. I know!!! Amazing, huh? As I said earlier, I was incredibly lucky in this process. My story is totally a Right Time/Right Place/ Right People kind of thing.
I finished my first book at the end of July 2005. I joined RWA at the beginning of August and attended my first local chapter meeting that month. In October, Sue Grimshaw [National Romance buyer for Borders] spoke at our chapter meeting and when a bunch of us went out to dinner after, I ended up sitting next to her. She asked about my book, I described it to her and she asked if I’d allow her to read it. I was so thrilled that someone actually wanted to read what I’d written that I had it printed out and in the mail to her the next day!
In January 2006 I got an email from her that she’d read it and loved it and wondered if I’d mind if she shared it with a friend of hers at Pocket Books. Within a week, I had a phone call from Pocket – they wanted to buy both that book and the follow up I was working on at the time.
If your publisher has contracted more than one book from you, what is your work time line, how helpful is your editor and are you under a lot of pressure to produce a big seller?
I’m currently working on my 7th book with Pocket Books. The expectation is basically a book every six months. My editor is … I’m not even sure I can come up with a word to describe how much I love working with her!! She’s fantastic and I thank my lucky stars every day for my good fortune.
As far as pressure to produce a big seller, I’m sure my publisher would be very happy to have that happen J but, to be honest I think the bulk of that type of pressure is pretty much self-inflicted.
What do you think is the biggest line of b*ll s**t an agent/editor/publisher tells aspiring writers?
Interesting question. I think aspiring writers need to be more concerned about the lines of BS they get from other aspiring writers than they do with what an industry professional is going to tell them.
Too often we allow other people -- contest judges, critique partners, fellow chapter mates, some relative – to alter our visions for our stories. They quote us “rules” or make suggestions that end up changing our stories and, ultimately, our voices. I’m not saying you should never take any advice you’re given, I’m just saying if what you’ve written speaks to you, if it’s something YOU’D enjoy reading, chances are really, really good that someone else will to. Don’t change it just because someone tells you can’t do that in romance.
The one exception to what I just said? If your editor wants it changed, then you’ll probably want to consider it. :)
I’m a huge believer in the absolute necessity of writing YOUR story, YOUR way.
What was the best advice you've received as a writer.
Finish the book and start the next one. Trust me, nothing we write is EVER good enough in our eyes…we can always find something we want to tweak or change. STOP IT!! Get on with the next one. J
How do you personally celebrate the release of a new book?
Actually, by release day, I’m usually deep into the next manuscript, so I don’t have a lot of time to celebrate. Instead, I celebrate turning in manuscripts. And I do that by taking a week off from writing and playing video games. [Yes… that is my embarrassing little secret! There’s nothing I like better than a good RPG with a bunch of monsters to kill!]
Any teenagers at home embarrassed by your status as a Romance Novelist? (I know my 16yr old is ambiguous at times! lol)
My sons are really supportive of my writing, but I have to admit, the youngest is pretty selective about who he tells. He’s 19 and just started college this year so, although he’ll gladly accompany me to writing conferences or hand out bookmarks at bookstores, he told me up front he wasn’t going to tell the professor in his literature class that I write. Why not? He didn’t want his professor to make the mistake of thinking that HE could write! J Still cracks me up!
There are a few old school well established authors who have voiced their dissention about the e-book revolution. What is your take on this booming industry?
I think e-books are great and I love that there are so many more places available for authors to get their work out there to the reading public. I don’t doubt for a minute that popularity of e-books will continue to grow as e-book readers [and e-books themselves] become more affordable.
On a personal note, I’ve held off on buying one so far because it irritates me no end that you have to lock yourself into one delivery system based on which reader you purchase. I’m still waiting for someone to come up with a universal e-reader that will allow me to buy my books from where ever I want to at that moment – even if that moment is 2:00 a.m. -- Amazon, B&N, Borders, BAM, individual publishers… any and all of them. Obviously, I’m going to be waiting a while! J
Where can fans reach you?
I LOVE to hear from readers!! And I do my best to answer, though I’ll admit up front in the month or two before a deadline, I get a little sloppy about getting back right away. J
You can contact me through my website:
www.MelissaMayhue.com [I have a ShoutBox on every page where you can leave comments and check back for my response], or you can email me directly – Melissa.M@MelissaMayhue.com.
I’m on MySpace [www.MySpace.com/MelissaMayhue] and on Twitter [www.Twitter.com/MelissaMayhue], and even on FaceBook – though I’m not there very often.
Okay, Melissa, your parting shot~~
First off, thank you SO much for inviting me to be here. To all my fellow writers, I’d just like to say again, the best thing you can do is to keep writing. Be true to yourself and write the story that’s in your heart.
It was a real pleasure Melissa! I'm a huge fan of the Daughters of the Glen series and I can tell you I'm counting down to the December release of A Highlander's Destiny. I wish you all the best in your career!