Saturday, April 7, 2012

Interview of Lydia Michaels

Tell us about your writing. What type of stories do you like to write? Any character you like to write about? Any themes you find inspiring?

Plain and simple, I write LOVE stories with generous love scenes. I try my best to write stories that take readers on an emotional evolution and leave them breathless. My best know work is The Order of Vampyres, a Paranormal Romance series based on nine immortal families living as an Amish order. All of my books take place in present day, but I love the angst of historical romances. There is just something so appealing about all that virginal innocence and those politically incorrect males. I think that is what drew me to the Amish theme. Working with such a primitive setting provides me with a freedom to almost time travel between pages, jumping from modern day English communities to simplistic and antiquated Amish farms. The chemistry between an immortal Amish male and an independent mortal female is always an interesting cocktail. Although I do use poetic license keep my Amish Vampyres clean shaven with magnificent features, they typically follow most Amish laws.

What is your favorite part of the writing process? What are your most dreaded tasks? How do you get through the tough parts?

My favorite part is the actual writing. More than anything I dread the editing process. I am dyslexic so editing can become quite tedious. Luckily, I always have plenty of wine and chocolate on hand to get me through these more difficult tasks.

What does a typical day look like for you?

A typical day for me starts at 4:30am, when everyone is still asleep and the house is quiet. I am dysfunctional without coffee, so that’s the first objective of every day. Once I have a hot mug in hand I am off to read my email and check any promotions I have going. Usually by my second cup of coffee my family is awake and I put aside my author hat and fasten on my supermom cape and ship my munchkin off to school (I’m really not the supermom type. I’m more a grown up Sue from The Middle meets a disheveled Martha Stewart). I then have six uninterrupted hours to write. When I am not writing I am doing the usual mom/wife things with the fam.

What author is your work most like? What author would you like to be more like?

This is a tricky question as I have no idea how my work is interpreted by others. I was once told by a fan that my “voice” is similar to Megan Harts. If I had to pick an author to be like, I would choose Lori Foster. She just seems so happy and satisfied with her life and career. She inspires me to never forget I, too, am living my dream.

What would you like readers to take away from your stories?

I was once told by a fan that finishing my books is like having to say goodbye to a best friend. That is exactly what I hope to give each reader, an experience comparable to the affection of a friend. I want to not only tell readers a story of love. I want them to fall in love right alongside the characters. I hope to give readers a story that is so touching it haunts their memories and is remembered fondly, never losing the ability to make them sigh.

What inspires you?

People. I love watching people and analyzing their foibles and strengths. My characters are usually amalgams of those who have passed through my life and inspired me in one way or another.

When and why did you begin writing?

I started writing a journal and it slowly became a book in 2008. I titled it Minster in my Closet and it is a never before told, true story based on my first relationship as a teenage girl, which was quite abusive. It is told from an adult woman’s perspective, reflecting back on a forgotten and terrifying time. Perhaps one day I will publish it. For now I only share the first line, Some people hide skeletons in their closets. I have a monster hidden in mine…

Do you have a specific writing style?

I love playing with words until even the description of a shoe sounds poetic. I love reading big, fat, juicy romances that are as rich in description and plot as they are sizzling in sex. I write what I love to read and my books are typically between 300-400 pages long.

Is there a message in your novels that you want readers to grasp?

I suppose, being that all my novels are centralized around love, I would hope that I am showing readers that love is not in word, but in deed and sometimes changing a flat tire can be more romantic than words, flowers, or diamonds.

Who’s your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?

At the moment I would say my favorite author is JR Ward. The Warden tells stories in such an intricate way, I don’t believe there is anyone who writes quite like her. I love how long her books are, how eclectic her characters are, how she incorporates slang, humor, violence, and smoking sex all in one. Her books are not stories. They are experiences.

Do you have any advice for other writers?

Yes, never give up! Manuscripts are like houses. They are never completely finished and never perfect. That’s why there are publishers. Publishing a book is the only way to stop an author from obsessing over every word. So until you find the right publisher for your work—improve, improve, improve!


What is your favorite comfort food?

Toasted multigrain bagel, cream cheese and an egg white. Don’t judge…it’s delicious.

What is your favorite guilty pleasure?

Dunkin Donuts coffee.

What is your favorite way to promote?

I prefer Facebook because it’s more personable and less formal. I love to interact with and getting to know my readers.

What is your favorite TV show? Why?

FRIENDS. I suppose because we all have a little of each character in us. I definitely have some Monica and Phoebe in me.

What current projects are you working on?

Currently, I am writing Destiny Calls, the third book in The Order of Vampyres. I have recently finished an Irish romance called Sacred Waters and I am also writing an erotic romance titled Breaking Perfect, which has a heat level far beyond anything I have ever written before. All of my published works can be found on my website atwww.LydiaMichaels.org and are available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Bookstrand, and other major retailers. My most recent release is Calling for a Miracle {Book 2} of The Order of Vampyres (March 29, 2012).

Isolated in the quiet hills of Pennsylvania is an Amish order unlike any other—they are vampyre.

After fleeing her oppressive marriage, Larissa Hartzler will give herself to no man, but Bishop Eleazar King has other plans. Eleazar is appalled when he discovers the always dutiful Larissa working in an English house of sin.

As the most respected immortal of The Order, Eleazar has always maintained unwavering control, but everything changes once he is called. His long standing position of authority is threatened when his need for his mate takes hold. There is nothing that will keep him from possessing the virginal Larissa as his mate. Not even her husband. Larissa’s fear of being found by Bishop King transforms into confusion when she learns he is her mate. Five times his minor and broken on so many emotional levels, Larissa knows she will be an inadequate mate for Eleazar. With gentle patience he begins to teach her what her husband never did, and slowly awakens Larissa’s desires

If you could be any paranormal creature, what would you be?

Carpathian Vampire. Christine Feehan’s Carpathians seem the have the coolest abilities of all the vampire books I have read. And I guess I would pick vampire over any other paranormal creature because they’re sexy as hell. Although Alcede from True Blood isn’t too shabby.

2 comments:

Janice Seagraves said...

Love your interview. I like Alcede too. ;)

Janice~

Lydia Michaels said...

Thank you, Janice:) And thanks to Nocturnal Nights for having me!