Interview with Michelle Roth

Good morning, Michelle, welcome to Coffee Time Romance. Why not get comfortable in our cozy recliner, and enjoy some delicious baked treats off the table. They are all calorie free. Karenne makes sure to take all the fattening stuff out. Don’t forget to slip on the relaxing fuzzy pink slippers. The readers are very eager to learn more about talented author, Michelle Roth.

Michelle, it is really good to have you with us today at Coffee Time. Would you take us into a day with Michelle? We are bearing chocolate.

Ooh, did someone say chocolate? Sure! What can I say? I’m easy 😉  Seriously. It’s great to meet you all! Hmm. Let’s jump right in. A day in the life usually starts around 10 in the morning. I wake up and handle all of my promo for my books, then I take care of any household chores that need doing. I smother my cats with love and attention until they tire of me. I’ll admit, that’s usually a good 10 minutes of my day right there! Then I settle into the writing cave until dinner time. I spend a little time with Hubs when he gets home, then tend to write until the early hours of the morning because the dark silence is my best writing tool. Rinse. Repeat.

Why not discuss your release, The Darkness Calls. I love the title. It already sounds intriguing.

Here’s the blurb:

When Lilly Ferguson narrowly avoids being mugged after work, she’s shocked to find that she’s gotten the attention of Talan McKenna. He’s the sinfully handsome owner of the Foxwood Casino and Spa where she works. There’s only one problem, though…

Talan is one of the Transfigured. Like half a million others across the globe, he possesses a very specific genetic mutation. It leaves him with the inability to age, an aversion to sunlight, and a thirst for human blood. When he learns of her tragic past, he worries that it’s an obstacle he’ll never be able to overcome.
Despite her heartbreaking history with the Transfigured, Lilly immediately senses that Talan is different. Where her fears once lay, there’s only a sense of peace and comfort. Just as they begin to build a love made to last several lifetimes, a shadowy figure from her past emerges and threatens to destroy everything.

The idea for this series came about when I was brainstorming. I wondered what a love would look like between a human and a vampire where the main issue isn’t one of them coming clean about vampirism. I’ll spare you the fascinating but lengthy trip from that random thought to a six book series. You know what they say though. The longest journey begins with the smallest step.

Vampires fascinate me. When thinking about vampires, was it difficult to come up with the right characters for the story, or did you already have them in mind?

They really fascinate me too. Once I had the very vague ideas about this new series, it was easy to develop the characters. I just thought about how I would feel living 486 years. (Which is the age of Talan McKenna the hero) Would I eat food? Maybe not. I’ve had it all before. What about music, movies, art and the like. Would they interest me? What about sex? Would that still be a novelty or would the shine wear off of that too? What about my family? How would I cope watching them die off? The era that I was born in, how would I handle that? I basically started interviewing myself as the character in order to answer these questions. It created a pretty well developed man, if I do say so myself. 😉  

What do you have planned next?

I’ve got several series in the works but, I’m currently working on the second installment of the The Transfigured Ones series. In this novel you’re going to get to know Magnus Corbett (vampire) and Caroline Lundquist (human). I’m hoping to get this to the publisher within the next week or so.

Do you write on schedule or when the inspiration strikes?

I try to keep to a schedule, but sometimes the words don’t cooperate. I do my best to keep my flighty artist tendencies to a minimum though. So even when the words are stuck, you can usually find me at the keyboard trying to push through that or working on something book related.

Please describe your writing place to us.

On the second floor of my townhouse, I’ve got a nook that serves as a den. It’s currently decorated with the covers of my past books along with trinkets. I’ve got a white board with some scribbled ideas and a desktop computer. Some notebooks laying around with writing tips I’ve gotten or ideas that I’ve thought of that haven’t made it into the electronic database I keep. It’s orderly. I can’t stand a mess in my office area.

Name three things you look for in a companion?

A companion? Or a COMPANION companion? (wiggles eyebrows)

I’m going to go with the second one because this is more fun to answer. I need to be attracted to them physically. They don’t have to be perfect face-chiseled abs but they do need to relatively attractive. They have to be smart enough to  hold a conversation, because god knows I love to talk! Lastly, I need a funny guy. I love to laugh and to make others laugh.

What great advice do you have to share with others?

What I love to share with others is a question someone asked me at a training session at work a long time ago. What would you do if you knew you could not fail?

Those words have fueled every single big decision that I’ve made since then. It was just some random corporate trainer the company hired to combat some of the low morale.

Little did they know that it would take me out of the direct marketing industry entirely and eventually lead me to being an author!

I love to share that because those simple words absolutely transformed my life!

You have some devoted readers arriving at your home for the evening, what elaborate meal would you serve them?

Oh gosh! This is a hard one because I LOVE to cook! I’d either serve them homemade peirogis or my homemade mushroom stuffed ravioli with smoked gouda sauce. Both vegetarian friendly just in case.

Is there anywhere that you would love to visit for at least a week?

Ireland, The UK, Italy, Greece, Japan. Any of those would do just fine, thank you. Should I be expecting a ticket in the mail soon? (crosses fingers)

What is the best snack to keep around to snack on?

Cheese curls. The crunchy ones. It’s a trial to avoid the cheesy club fingers if you eat too many but it’s worth it, I think.

Michelle, is there anything else you would like to share?

Nope. I would like to thank you, Cherokee, for the thought provoking questions and your time, though. I appreciate being able to sit down and discuss The Darkness Calls with you today!

Thank you for being with us today. It was fun getting to learn more about Michelle. I look forward to reading all your wonderful stories.

You’re so very welcome!