Reading by Deb: INTERVIEW with SAMANTHA MICHAELS

I want to thank Samantha Michaels for taking the time for this interview!

BIO:

Samantha Michaels was born in 1973 in the small town of Abington, PA and was raised and still lives in Hatboro, PA (both suburbs of Philadelphia). She is married to her high school sweetheart and they have a rescue dog, a beautiful Black Lab named Holly.

When she’s not writing or working at her full-time job, she enjoys watching her Philly sports team (hopefully) win, listening to heavy metal/hard rock music, Texas Hold Em, reading, and spending time with friends and family.

Her love of reading began at a young age, thanks to her mother and Sesame Street. Her mom read to her constantly, and by three years old, she was reading on her own, and hasn’t stopped. This eventually turned into a love of writing. She was writing for herself and then for a small group of friends, one of whom told her she should be writing books. She took her friends advice and has since published several romance books with plenty more on the way.

When and how did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I started reading as a young child. I was very shy and found it impossible to make friends, so my friends became the characters in the books I was reading. I would imagine myself into stories with those characters.

It wasn’t until I got into middle school that I started putting things on paper. It was secretly always a dream of mine to publish a book.

Did you have any influencing writers growing up?

I loved Judy Blume. She gave me my first taste of steamy books with Forever.

I also loved reading VC Andrews and Mary Higgins Clark.

Are any of your characters based on people in real life?

My female characters all have pieces of me in them. Some of my secondary characters are based on people I’ve encountered, and when that has been a less than pleasant experience, turning them into characters has helped me deal with some things I’ve gone through.

Where do you draw your book inspirations from?

Music tends to be my biggest muse. I always pay close attention to lyrics, especially those songs that tell a story.

One of my books came to me just from listening to a particular song. I never copy the song completely out of respect to the artist, but rather use it for the basis of the story.

Do you use have a basic outline when starting a new story or do you let the characters lead the way?

I tried planning on my first novel and found that I wasn’t a fan. Since then, I’ve just let the characters tell me what they want to do. They tell the stories; I just type them.

When you are picturing the characters in your book, do you have a cheater photo for inspiration?

For my male leads, yes.

I write rockstar romance, so there is either a real-life rockstar or model that serves as my main inspiration. I use that for my physical descriptions.

Many people read as a form of escape and relaxation. What is your favorite way to sit back and relax?

Reading is definitely one of them. I also love listening to music. Certain songs/artists take me to a different place, so they are my go-to.

Who are your favorite current authors to read?

There are a lot, so this list is not all-inclusive, but some of my favorites are Sallyanne Johnson, Lala Montgomery, JJ Grice, Felicity Rose, and KH Anastasia.

What are your favorite books by others?

One of the best books I’ve read recently is Mission Promiscuous by Lala Montgomery. I also love the Black series and White series by Sallyanne Johnson.

But, my all-time favorite book comes from a show I grew up watching, Sesame Street! I’m a huge Grover fan and I adore The Monster at the End of this Book!

Do the locations in the stories have any meaning to you?

Starting with my second book, yes. I switched from Los Angeles to having my stories take place in some of the small towns near where I live. These are places I often visited as a child and still do today.

I like small-town life and have found that my stories have meant more to me personally since I switched that up.

Do you write in single or multiple POV?

Multiple POV.

My first series was all third person. Then I started reading more books done in first person, dual, so I decided to give that a try with my current series. It took a little getting used to, but I love it now and doubt I’ll ever return to third person.

What do you find to be your best research tool?

Google for sure. The FBI would have a field day with my search history. For the towns that I include, since I’m a frequent visitor, I have my own knowledge plus I take a lot of pictures so I can refer back.

Do you write under a pen name? Also, do you write under more than one name?

Yes. Samantha Michaels is a pen name. I wanted to be able to keep my writing life separate from my day job.

What genre do you write and why is this your preference?

I write contemporary romance.

I love a happy ending, which I have to credit to growing up watching John Hughes movies! Sixteen Candles will always be my favorite.

I also enjoy writing stories where the female has insecurities, and her love interest helps her overcome those. My husband did that for me in real life!

Tell me something about yourself outside of writing. Jobs, accomplishments, family, quirky trait...what led to you being you?

From the minute I set foot inside a classroom, I loved the learning aspect of school, but I was terrible at the social aspect, so I rarely talked to anyone other than teachers.

My thirst for knowledge never left me, and I hold a Master of Management degree. I’ve been working for the same company since I was 16 and worked my way up to a higher-level role.

If you are a duo writing team, how do you share the writing process?

I’ve always just been a solo writer.

What advice would you give to an aspiring writer?

Find a more experienced author to network with. I started this journey alone and figured things out as I went. I wish I had sought out a mentor at the beginning. Remembering that is why I’m always willing to help others. I recently had someone tell me she looked at me as a mentor, and that meant the world to me.

How do you deal and process negative book reviews?

I wish I could say I didn’t let them bother me, but I’m getting better at it.

I’ve learned to only focus on the aspects that help me be a better writer, as opposed to reader preference, and that has made it a little bit easier.

What is the most difficult part of your writing process?

Definitely editing. I love writing the stories, but I do not love the editing part.

What do you need in your writer’s space to keep you focused?

I always need to have access to music. That’s one of the nice things about digital music. I always have it right there on my computer.

I also need a blanket wrapped around me, and I happen to have one with my favorite musician on it.

What is your naughty indulgence as you are writing?

I have a folder on my computer called hotties where I keep a collection of inspirational photos of gorgeous men. It is research, after all!

If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose? And why?

I’m a huge fan of Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series.

I would love to sit down and talk with her about character development, as I absolutely love the way she writes Stephanie’s character.

What is your schedule like when you are writing? Do you have a favorite writing snack or drink?

I have a full-time job, so most of my writing happens in the morning before and in the evening after dinner.

I typically don’t snack while I’m writing, but I do always love having something to drink. Diet Cherry Pepsi is my weakness.

Do you listen to music when you write – what kind of music is your favorite?

Always. I’m a huge fan of hard rock and heavy metal. My favorite will always be the “hair metal” bands from the 80s.

Have pets ever gotten in the way of your writing?

Quite the opposite. I’ve found that when I hit a period of writer’s block that walking my dog helps.

Stepping away from the computer, enjoying the outdoors and spending time with my fur-baby gets the juices flowing.

What is your kryptonite as a writer? What totally puts you off your game?

When family reacts negatively to what I write.

I recently had an issue with a family that I never expected would say what was said and it left me so upset that I didn’t write for over a week. It took some encouraging words from a couple of authors I’m in a group chat with to put me back on track.

Have you ever killed off a character that your readers loved?