Author Melony Paradise Shares Their Story

About the Author
Just a laid-back chick with eccentric tastes who loves writing, reading, music, horror flicks, crafting, and unusual things. I live in South Carolina with my wonderful husband, our cat Gyzmo, and two chickens that eat like pigs.

What inspires you to write romance books?
I am inspired by many of my favorite authors, but in particular, Yasmine Galenorn's books really inspire the romantic parts of me.

Tell us about how you write:
In the past, I have failed miserably as a pantser. I've started many stories that never made it past the halfway mark, and I believe that was because I never gave myself the structure I needed to see an end to those stories. With my current works in progress, I have detailed outlines that keep me on track without restricting my creativity. If my character decides to turn left when I want them to go right, well, left it is! I write in Word, mostly because that is what I am most experienced in. I have scrivener, which I use to keep track of my chapters by cutting and pasting them from Word. Besides those two, I use OneNote to keep track of my stories. I use it as my series bible.

Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
We have a symbiotic relationship. I generally organize an outline with all the major events I want to happen and any pertinent info that pops into my head, but when I write, if I feel a compelling nudge to go a certain direction in a scene, I don't ignore it.

What advice would you give other writers?
As I am a new author, I can only say, research the trade. Learn how to properly structure a sentence, paragraph, dialogue, etc. Learn all you can, apply it to your writing, but don't let it change your voice. I made the mistake of starting my novel, not knowing if I was going to make anything of it, then when it looked like I wasn't going to lose interest (the writing bug really bit me), I started researching every aspect of writing. I got so overwhelmed, it affected my writing. When my novel made it to an editor, I spent more time fixing things I thought I had fixed before with one technique or another. There's a ton of information out there, you just have to find the stuff that helps you be the best writer you can be.

How did you decide how to publish your books?
I am self-publishing. I researched the pro's and con's of traditional versus self-publishing, and decided that I prefer to retain control of my writing and all the other aspects of publishing. I wasn't willing to wait through all the time it would take to find an agent, find a publisher, let them edit my words, pick my covers, and take the majority of my royalties. I like to be in control. Two of my favorite authors self-publish, one has made a successful career of it, and the other is switching from traditional to indie, due to many of the same reasons I chose not to go traditional. Keep in mind, self-publishing is expensive, and takes a ton of work.

What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I believe society will rely less and less of print books. Self-publishing is really getting big, and I think it's possible that there may come a time when traditional publishers will have to spend more time searching for authors than the other way around.

What genres do you write?
Science fiction romance and paranormal urban fantasy

What formats are your books in?
eBook

Website(s)
Author Home Page Link
Link To Author Page On Amazon

Your Social Media Links
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMelonyParadise/
https://twitter.com/katiania