An Interview with Maree Anderson

The Reading Cafe is happy to welcome Maree Anderson. Last month, Maree released Liminal,her first book in her new Liminals series.

She is here to discuss her new release, as well as what else we may have to look forward to in 2013/2014

Let’s meet Maree

 

 

TRC: Hi Maree, welcome to The Reading Café. Thank you for taking the time to answer some questions today. We are always looking forward to reading about the author behind the book.

Maree: Hey! *waves from New Zealand* Thank you so much for inviting me here. (And I hope the author behind the book isn’t too scary for your readers!)

TRC: Please tell us about yourself.

Maree: I’m a Kiwi — a New Zealander, and I’ve been a full-time writer for a few years… which means that because the room that I’ve taken over as my office is right off my bedroom, I often get to “go to work” in my pjs… and occasionally scare courier drivers needing a signature on their delivery into lifelong therapy. (It’s not a pretty sight when my non-scruffy pjs are in the washing basket.)

I’m an avid reader of romance — paranormal, fantasy, sci-fi, historicals, contemporary, YA… you name it. And I generally read around 15-20 books a month. My bookcases are overflowing. My desk has teetering piles of TBRs. I love my Kindle and my iPhone because now I’m never stuck without a book no matter where I happen to be. Bliss! And when I’m not reading or writing, I try to get to a karate or dance class.

TRC: When and how did you first become interested in writing?

Maree: I wish I could say writing has always been my passion, but I was a late starter. And I confess to being the teensiest bit envious of people who know what they want to do from an early age and go for it. You guys are really lucky!

I hadn’t a clue what I ultimately wanted to do when I quit work to become a full-time mom. The idea was to go back to part-time work once my youngest started school and about a year out I started to panic; over the years I’d had a series of meh jobs that I’d never enjoyed, and in a year’s time I’d be jumping on that treadmill again? Wasn’t a good feeling. I figured it was my last chance to try something “out there” rather than playing it safe. So I came up with the bright idea of writing a book… as you do. *shakes head in mock despair at her cluelessness*

I was reading a lot of Marian Keyes at the time — Sushi For Beginners remains one of my many all-time favorite books — so I figured I’d try writing something angsty but still with elements of humor. Man. Did those two pages suck the big kumara. (Translation: they were really really bad.) So I brooded for a bit. And then re-read one of my favorite series (The Gap Sequence by Stephen Donaldson), got smacked upside the head with a totally unrelated idea for a story, started dreaming about the darn heroine, and finally gave in and sat down to write it. Nine months (and far too many words!) later, the first book of a fantasy trilogy was born…

…and that might have been that, except for a chance conversation with a guy at a restaurant, who asked what scared me about taking the next step. Which resulted in some Googling that led me to join Romance Writers of New Zealand so I could enter the story in the RWNZ Clendon Award. To my surprise, my story finalled, and I was hooked.

TRC: What are the challenges or difficulties that you found in your writing career?

Maree: (Warning: Painful Honesty Ahoy!) Despite a number of my unpublished manuscripts doing well in the contest circuit, I’ve struggled with believing that me and my stories are “good enough”.

I guess a large part of it stems from the fact I’ve always set writing challenges for myself, and tried new things. Perhaps if I’d stuck with one genre and style of story, I would have been able to track the improvement from manuscript to manuscript and felt proud of my accomplishments. Instead, I’d straight away write something new, enter it in a contest for feedback, query it around for a bit, and get started on the next book/challenge. I never took time out to truly appreciate how far I’d come. (Note to family and friends of writers: please keep reminding the writers in your lives to celebrate each milestone — even if it’s just by prying them away from their computer for a celebratory coffee.)

And even after I was picked up by Red Sage Publishing and started working with editors who really loved my “voice” and believed in my stories, I still struggled with self-belief. (Along with the fact that although I enjoyed writing erotic romance, I didn’t want to only write erotic romance… and it was a bit tiresome being introduced as “This is Maree. She writes porn.” Sheesh. *rolls eyes*)

It’s only recently I’ve finally let go of my need for the validation I thought I’d get by doing things the “proper” way (i.e. write a book, query ‘til the cows come home, get an agent, etc.) I’ve discovered I can just write the stories I love, and readers will somehow find my books. I’m even getting fan-mail, which just blows my mind! So I’m proud that I stuck with it and didn’t toss in the towel no matter how hard it got — not that my DH would have let me. He reckons no way would he let all that suffering and angst I’ve put him through be for nothing 🙂

TRC: You released a new series in late July, can you please tell us the premise of LIMINAL, which is your first book in this YA series?  Also, how many books are you planning for this series?

Links to order Liminal: 
Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Kobo

Maree: The idea for Liminal was conceived while reading Karen Marie Moning’s Fever series. I read the word “liminal” and my mind just went into overdrive. Simply put, “liminal” is an intermediate state or phase or condition; a threshold or transitional state. And it got me thinking about how people sometimes feel invisible — you know, like when you’re in the middle of speaking and someone just talks right over you like you aren’t even there?

And next thing I’d come up with Wren, a sixteen-year-old girl who feels like she’s invisible, and then discovers that often she really is invisible. Worse, whenever she reappears, people seem to have forgotten who she is. And then she meets Kade, and finds out she’s a lim — a liminal, who can phase in and out of the real world. Which sounds like a cool trick, but turns out to be really, really complicated.

To answer the dreaded “How many books are you planning?”question: Although I’ve embraced the joy of outlining, I haven’t gotten so far as to plan out how many books I intend to write in a series. I have an end in sight for Wren and Kade, and I’ll work toward that end with however many books it takes. That said, I have the greatest respect for authors who tie up a series and don’t keep it going just for the sake of it. Some of my all-time favorite series have been complete after anywhere between three and six books (Curse Workers series by Holly Black, Dante Valentine series and Jill Kismet series by Lilith Saintcrow, Karen Moning’s Fever series). So at this stage, I’m guessing at least three books? But we’ll see. Wren and Kade might throw me a curve-ball.

TRC: In March of this year, you released all three books in your Seer’s Hope series.  Please give us a brief description of this series.

Maree: Seer’s Hope is the final incarnation of the very first book I ever wrote. It’s about Hope, a young blind woman who’s snatched from her safe, comfortable life and dumped in a primitive world of capricious gods and magic. Upon arrival she’s transformed—her eyes turn gold. And the people she encounters get one look at her golden eyes and believe she’s a Seer with awesome powers at her command. Of course Hope she doesn’t believe any of this until she comes face to face with undeniable evidence that she’s destined to save an entire race of people from a living death. And she’s terrified she may not learn to harness her powers in time to save those she’s grown to love.

I describe The Seer Trilogy as “fantasy with romantic elements”. The second book, Seer’s Promise, centers around Hope and Blayne’s daughter, Romana. And the third book, Seer’s Choice, around their only surviving son, Ryley. But Hope’s journey spans all three books, so it’s a while before she gets her (well-deserved!) happy ever after. Seer’s Hope is currently free at a bunch of e-tailers, and I’ve also published an eBook bundle of the entire trilogy.

TRC: Also in March, you release your other series, The Crystal Warriors.  Can you tell us the premise of this series? We also see on your website that you will be writing the 4th book in this series soon.

Maree: I released a eBook bundle of the first three books in the Crystal Warriors series in March, but all three books were published individually prior to that, beginning with The Crystal Warrior and Ruby’s Dream (both released in 2011), and Jade’s Choice (2012).

The Crystal Warriors are men from another world sent to Earth centuries ago, and ordered to bring back women—a desperate attempt by their leaders to repopulate a dying world. Unfortunately the troop encountered Pieter, an old man who had the ear of a goddess and was determined to protect the women of his village. Pieter cursed the warriors to their namesake crystals, but because powerful magic always has a price, he became the Crystal Guardian, forced to watch over the imprisoned men until each warrior is given his chance at redemption. So the crystal warriors aren’t the only ones being punished!

The series can be read out of order as each book stands alone and features a different crystal warrior. But I’d recommend they be read in order for the recurring characters and the little snippets that reveal more about the origins of the crystal warriors as a whole. (The Crystal Warrior is currently free at a bunch of places if anyone would like to check it out.)

TRC: You won a number of awards for your Freaks of Greenfield High series.  We also see on your website that this series has been optioned for TV.  What can you tell us about the premise of this book, and the status of the TV show?

Maree: The heroine of Freaks of Greenfield High is Jay, a cyborg who looks just like a teenage girl. Her creator has been killed and she’s on the run from a covert organization that plans to use her as a weapon. When she hides out at a small-town high school, things don’t go to plan because it turns out she’s evolving and experiencing emotions for the very first time. And then she encounters disgraced ex-jock, Tyler, and her logical brain goes completely haywire. That’s when everything starts to get really complicated.

Freaks was my first YA, and a really fun book to write. Amazingly it’s proven popular with its target audience as well as adults—men and women, alike. In fact I’ve even gotten fan-mail from guys who loved it, and tell me a certain scene makes them cry—doesn’t get better than that for a writer J. It was feedback from those readers that inspired me to write a sequel, Freaks in the City, which I published in August last year.

As for the TV thing: Freaks of Greenfield High was discovered by the executive of a Canadian production company, and they optioned the TV rights last year. The option has just been renewed, so we’re all hopeful they can find funding to take the project to the next stage. I’ve had heaps of readers tell me they’d love to see Jay kick butt on the small screen. She’s described as “funny” – which is entirely unintentional on Jay’s part! – and “badass”. I think Jay would appreciate the last part, at least 😉 And I’d love to see characters I’ve created on TV — that’s total dream-come-true material 🙂

TRC: You write in a number of genres, such as YA, Paranormal, Romance and Fantasy.  Do you have a preference as to which genre you enjoy writing the most?  Do you find it difficult when switching between genres?

Maree: Great question! I don’t have a preference, perhaps because regardless of sub-genre, each of my stories features a romance and an element of the magical. (I once tried to write a straight contemporary story… but it ended up being a humorous erotic romance with a heroine who had no clue she was a part-time cat-shifter, and became Kat On A Hot Tin Roof  in Red Sage’s Secrets Volume 30 anthology. So I give up!)

The only real thing I have to be hyper-aware of is the age-appropriateness of the main character(s) and the heat level of any romantic scenes depending on whether I’m writing for the adult or YA market. Honestly? I adore being able to write about a teen’s first love, and then change it up with an experienced alpha hero determinedly pursuing his bond-mate with seduction on his mind. I couldn’t ask for a better job than this.

TRC: What are you currently working on?

Maree: I’m currently working on the fourth crystal warriors book, Opal’s Wish. It features Danbur, and there’s a bit of a twist because Danbur’s chance at redemption depends on not only the heroine of the story, Opal, but Opal’s young daughter, Sera.

TRC: What is your writing process?  Do you have a favorite place or time you like to write?

Maree: I wave off my husband and kids each morning, and then grab breakfast and a coffee and a book. I read for about an hour, then head into my office. I clear my emails and deal with anything urgent, then I work steadily through the day (with a quick break to grab lunch), until it’s time to do the mom-taxi thing ferrying the kids all over the place for sports activities. I find my slow-cooker is a godsend, because I can chuck something in it at lunchtime, and forget about it until I hear the ominous sound of the garage door opening and realize, oh crap, my husband’s home and it’s gone seven! Lucky for us, he’s a great cook and he’ll pick up the slack if dinner has, uh, slipped my mind because I’m on a roll. J

I also tend to work weekends. It’s hard not to when the computer’s just there, and I have to pass my office to get downstairs….

TRC:  Is there a book or author that gave you the inspiration to write?

Maree: I’ve already mentioned that Stephen Donaldson’s The Gap Sequence gave me the inspiration for my first ever story, but it was Angela Knight who inspired me to write the erotic romance novella which led to my first publishing contract.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Maree: Nope! I think if your readers have gotten this far they already deserve a gold star *g*

LIGHTNING ROUND:

FAVORITE FOOD:  Anything chocolate

FAVORITE DESSERT: Any dessert I didn’t have to bake or cook

MILK OR DARK CHOCOLATE: Both!

FAVORITE LITERARY CHARACTER (not your own): Raphael from Nalini Singh’s Guild Hunter series – dark and dangerous and OMG-sexy angel… *fans herself wildly*

FAVORITE TV SHOW:  Supernatural

LAST MOVIE YOU SAW: Loopers (DVD), Fast and Furious 6 (at the movies)

TRC: Thank you, Maree for answering our questions. The Reading Café wishes you the best of luck with Liminal.

Maree: Thank you so much for your thought-provoking questions, and for letting me burble on about writing and my books!

If you want to learn more about Maree, you can find her at the following links:
Maree’s website: www.mareeanderson.com
Maree’s Books: www.mareeanderson.com/books
Liminal: www.liminalbook.com
The Crystal Warrior: www.thecrystalwarrior.com
Freaks of Greenfield High: www.freaksofgreenfieldhigh.com

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