Melissa Williams

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Melissa Williams lives and works in Ontario, Canada and loves to surround herself in the random and ridiculous. When not writing steamy romances, she enjoys watching bad reality T.V., drinking wine and basking in the sun. But more often than not she can be found reading in her favorite comfy chair with a coffee by her side. For the latest updates and more about Melissa, visit her at www.melissawilliamsauthor.wordpress.com or follow her on Twitter @ReadMel6.

Write to Melissa Williams at [email protected]

 

Q: What got you into writing?

A: Honestly, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and my own personal heartbreak got me to finally put my thoughts on paper. I was going through a bit of a personal rough patch and one day after talking to a friend she challenged me to “write about it”. So I did. The rough draft of my first novel, Burning Rain, was written in thirty days and was the most rewarding challenge of my life. I’ve always loved the written word but never dreamed I would be where I am today.

Q: Where do your ideas come from?

A: They come from everywhere. Sometimes I’ll have a dream and wake up thinking “yeah, that would be an awesome plotline”. Other times, I get inspiration from just people watching on public transit. I’m constantly compelled to create stories in my mind about everyday people I encounter.

Q: What is your writing day like?

A: My writing days are never the same. Usually I’ll start early in the morning (after a cup of coffee) and then see what happens. Some days I feel like I could type forever, where others leave me staring at the screen with nothing to say. However, if inspiration does hit, then I’m usually writing all day long with only a few breaks in between.

Q: Do you have any strange writing habits?

A: Yes, I do! There are two things I cannot start a day of writing off without: a large cup of coffee and my neon pink lipstick. I have a slight coffee addiction, so without it I’m rendered useless. The neon pink lipstick however just makes me feel beautiful as I write. I may be in yoga pants and ripped up t-shirt, but with my lipstick on I feel glamourous and ready to make my readers fall in love.

Q: When you start a new story, what is your process? Do you plot everything out or just start writing?

A: Usually when I start writing a new story I only plot out three things before I dig in. The main characters, the climax of the story and the “break-up” scene. Before I begin, I have to know everything about my characters – their backstory, physical description, greatest fear, etc. For a period of time they become my best friends so I have to know everything about them. For the climax of the story, I usually quickly jot down what will happen. For Burning Rain, I remember being on the subway and jotting down in my phone “Rainey forgets steamy romance book, gets kidnapped then all Hell breaks loose”. As long as I have some general idea of how the action builds, I’m good to go. And, with the “break-up” scene I take my cues from my characters and decide how they will have a moment of miscommunication that may lead to them walking away – if only for a quick period of time before they get back together and find their HEA. Once those three things are worked out, I just start writing and see where it leads me.

Q: Do your characters have any of your personal traits?

A: When I was writing out the character of Rainey Smith and made her a waitress with multiple jobs, I knew I had to give her something to give her strength other than her unbreakable determination. So I made her a coffee addict just like me! I can’t get through the work day without caffeine coursing through my veins and I didn’t know how Rainey would work twelve hour plus days without it. Her constant craving for coffee is what I love most about her and always made me laugh as I wrote about it.

Q: What are you working on right now?

A: Currently I’m working on book 2 in the Caston Springs trilogy – playboy Chase Hayes and Noelle’s story.

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