About Melanie Jackson:
Melanie has been writing her entire life. In fact, one of her earliest fond memories is receiving an IBM Selectric typewriter for her birthday. After publishing romance novels (Scottish historical and paranormal) for New York based publisher Dorchester Publishing from 1999 to 2010. She is the award-winning author of more than one hundred novels, novellas and poems published in various languages. She was a 2004 Romantic Times Career Achievement Award Finalist–Contemporary New Reality, a 2003 Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award Finalist–Best Historical Paranormal Fantasy, a 2003 Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award Finalist–Best Contemporary Paranormal and won the 2001 Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award–Best Time-travel. Five years ago she started writing cozy mysteries and began illustrating and writing children’s books in 2015. She lives in the Sonoma wine country with her writer husband and spoiled cat.
What inspires you to write?
The world is full of fascinating people and things. Every day, in almost every place, there will be something that will spark and idea. History is also full of wonderful mysteries and it is fun to play the What If…? game, imagining what it would be like if you could step back in time and observe events for yourself.
Tell us about your writing process.
By nature I am a panster, but mysteries require a degree of outlining to avoid having to backtrack and insert clues. I don’t do formal outlining. Some notes on an a pad of paper is sufficient. I also like to use Pinterest for visual storyboarding.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
Most characters are polite and confine themselves to quiet, waking hours, but a few have been terribly pushy. I was months getting rid of Alexandre Duma, even when Divine Night was finished. He kept showing up in my dreams, cooking and telling me more stories about his life.
What advice would you give other writers?
Perfect your craft. Learn the rules– and then break them if you need to. But most of all, what is required is persistence and an almost insane belief that you will triumph against the odds. Stubbornness can count as much as talent.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I started off writing for a traditional publisher in New York, but eventually I decided to switch from romance to mysteries and found the door closed to me. That is when I began self-publishing– and I am very glad that I did. Now I have a happy situation where my romances are handled by Montlake (Amazon) and I publish my mysteries and children’s books.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think the future is bright, but there will be changes and writers must be ready to adapt to new technologies. We do e books, paper and audio books, but who can guess what will be next? Interactive books? Holographic novels? One thing is certain, people will always want stories. From our earliest days, huddled around the campfire, hiding from the saber-toothed tigers, we have been a species that loves stories. That won’t change even if the delivery system does.
What do you use?: Professional Editor
What genres do you write?: Cozy mysteries and historical mysteries, romance, and children’s bedtime stories
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print, Audiobook
Website(s)
Melanie Jackson Home Page Link
Link To Melanie Jackson Page On Amazon
Your Social Media Links
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
All information in this post is presented “as is” supplied by the author. We don’t edit, to allow you, the reader, to hear the author in their own voice.
