Welcome to let’s get real with Author Michelle Miles today!
Susan: Tell us a little about you, your background, and what is fun about you!
Michelle: Hi! First, thanks for having me! I’m excited to be here.
A little about me: I write fantasy, paranormal and urban fantasy all with an action/adventure twist. I’ve been writing for a couple of decades and published since 2006. I love to write series, so you will see a lot of them from me.
After many years of trying to write to the market, trying to break into the big publishers, trying to stay published with smaller publishers, I decided to go full indie. I have been writing what I want and what I love for a few years now. I love the entire process from start to finish (creation to publication).
I’m married and have a college-age son and a black cat named Sir Dexter.
I think what’s fun about me is I can remember movie lines better than what I did yesterday and love quoting them! 🙂
Question: What are your favorite color, food, and music?
Color: BLUE!
Food: Mexican or steak and potatoes
MUSIC: I love classic rock!
Susan: Tell us about your book. Where does your book take place? Why did you choose that time and location?
Michelle: My current book (releasing May 31) is the fourth book in my Dream Walker urban fantasy series. It takes place in the near future, all over the world, and is about a relic hunter searching for Holy Relics while trying to fight demons. I LOVE this book and this series. I didn’t really pick the setting or time period; my main character did.
Book 4 is called Smoke and Ashes and follows Anna, my dream walking main character, through her quest to find the Holy Grail. She is hunted by a gang of vampires, threatened by Lucifer, and tormented by her unresolved feelings of the love interest.
You can read each of these books as a standalone, but you really get a better sense of the story if you read them in order.
Here is the blurb for SMOKE AND ASHES, Book 4 in the Dream Walker series:
Anna begins her quest for the Holy Grail, the most sacred of the Holy Relics promising eternal life.
But as with all divine pursuits, nothing is ever easy for her. Lucifer has a score to settle with her and sends every weapon in his malevolent arsenal to impede her. He demands Anna hand over the Relics, including the grail cup, if she wants her adopted mother to live. To make matters worse, vampiric religious zealots track Anna down insisting she return their property, and she is branded an international cultural thief, hunted by Interpol.
With enemies old and new hot on her trail, she must place her faith in Kincade, the one and only person who can keep her out of the dark lord’s hands. Their quest forces the two of them to acknowledge the long-burning desire smoldering between them.
Kincade must use every power within him to keep her soul from Lucifer’s control. He enlists the help of an unlikely ally—a dream walker with the gift of foresight and divine power. But will it be enough to keep Anna alive or will she be lost to him forever?
Susan: What makes your hero/heroine fascinating so we can’t put the book down? Spoilers are not allowed.
Michelle: Anna is the main character. Kincade is the love interest that has been with her since book 1, almost page 1.
Anna is such a fun character to write. She tends to make bad decisions, but her heart is in the right place. Plus, she’s a bit of a mess. She’s sarcastic and cusses a lot. She has a lot of inner conflicts she has to overcome to become who she truly is. She’s faced a lot of loss, dealt with grief, and yet she still picks herself up and keeps going. She has a deep connection to Kincade, though she doesn’t know why or how, and yet rolls with it. She will put her life on the line for her friends; she will do whatever it takes to keep the people she loves safe and out of harm’s way. Sometimes she succeeds at that. Sometimes she doesn’t and she has to deal with the consequences of her choices.
I wrote Anna’s character arc knowing where I wanted to go from Book 1 to Book 5: from orphan and nothing to savior of mankind. She has really grown over the series.
Susan: What do you love most about your book? What was the toughest part?
Michelle: The part I love AND the toughest part is writing all the locations and figuring out her quests, the twists and turns for each book, where she will find the hidden relic. It involves a lot of research—geography, history, and archeology. It’s hard, because I want to make sure I get the details right but also not bombard the reader with too many details, info dump, or be preachy when it comes to the Christian overtones.
Susan: Please, share a two-paragraph sneak peek.
Michelle: I’ll share the opening paragraphs of the book. It will give you a sense of who Anna is.
I am not a particularly elegant person. I’m a mess on a good day. I’ve walked around in clothes soaked in black demon blood smelling like a sewer and looking like something the cat dragged in off the back porch. I’ve had blood crusted under my fingernails and never blinked an eyelash. I’ve been to Hell and back—literally. I’ve killed more demons with my jade-handled dagger than I can count.
The fact I was at a glitzy gala in Spain dressed in an elegant ball gown and upper length satin gloves with my black hair done in a fancy chignon and makeup on my face, well, it made me question a lot of things about my life.
Susan: Why did you write your book?
Michelle: This is a great question! I felt I had a calling to write this book. I got the idea in one flash one day. When the book first came to me—actually the character of Anna showed up and demanded attention—I wasn’t sure I could pull it off. I knew it would be a difficult series to write, and I wasn’t wrong. But the idea, and Anna, would not leave me alone. So, I wrote the first draft of the first book in a journal. I think I rewrote that book a dozen times before it finally felt right to me. I wouldn’t say this is the book of my heart, but I will say this is a series that I felt I needed to write.
Susan: What do you love to do when you’re not writing?
Michelle: Nothing. LOL! Seriously, though, I run an Etsy shop as well as write journals under a different pen name. I watch a lot of hockey during the winter and baseball during the spring/summer. Mostly, though, I don’t watch a lot of TV unless there is a show I can’t live without. I’m currently loving Picard on Paramount+. I also like to read when I have time.
Susan: What is next for you in writing? Sequel? Different book? Research? Traveling?
Michelle: My next book will be the final one in the Dream Walker series, but I am also planning a new 8-book series that will be fairy tales and other story retellings. I’m super excited about that series and cannot wait to get started.
Susan: What is your favorite line in the book?
Michelle: Great question! There are so many… hard to pick just one! Here it is: “Our destinies lie within our own hands, Ronan. Not visions or prophecies.”
Susan: Where can we find out more about your books?
Michelle: At my website: https://michellemiles.net/ where you can also sign up for my newsletter.
Here are all my social media links:
Website: https://michellemiles.net/
Email: contact@michellemiles.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MichelleMilesAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/michellemiles
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michellemilesauthor/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/MilesOfRomance/_saved/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/michelle-miles
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/author/michellemiles
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/477915.Michelle_Miles
You can buy SMOKE AND ASHES here: https://books2read.com/SmokeAndAshes
Susan: Do you have any parting words for our readers or aspiring authors?
For aspiring authors: Writing is hard work but worth it. If you truly love it, don’t give up. Find the genre that speaks to you and write those books you want to read.
For readers: I hope you’ll check out my books, sign up for my newsletter, and connect with me on social media!
Thank you for having me!
Susan: Thank you for getting real with us today at Nights of Passion!
Truly,
-Susan
Susan Hanniford Crowley, Amazon Kindle Bestselling Author of Vampire Romance and now YA novels too.
www.susanhannifordcrowley.com
Where love burns eternal and whispers in the dark!
More detailed descriptions for Susan’s books are on https://susanhannifordcrowley.com or https://www.amazon.com/Susan-Hanniford-Crowley/e/B004YXOGXG
New Release: (sweet romance) EverWarm is available in Kindle and Paperback at Amazon.
New Release: (sweet romance) Lady Fallon’s Dragons is now available at Kindle and Amazon Paperback, Nook, Kobo, Smashwords, Scribd, and a Paperback through BAM’s online store, paperback by ordering with Waterstones.
The Vampire with a Blanket of Stars, Arnhem Knights of New York, Book 3 is available in Amazon Paperback and Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Apple, Walmart ebooks & Smashwords.
Vampire Princess of New York, Arnhem Knights of New York, Book 2 available in Kindle and Kindle Unlimited!
Vampire King of New York, Arnhem Knights of New York, Book 1 now in Kindle and Print! Walmart Bookstore Online
Vampire in the Basement, Vampires in Manhattan, Book 4 available in Kindle.
Poseidon’s Catch(mythology romance) is available in Kindle.
Mrs. Bright’s Tea Room (steampunk romance) is available in Kindle.
A Vampire for Christmas, Vampires in Manhattan, Book 3 available in Kindle.
The Stormy Love Life of Laura Cordelais, Vampires in Manhattan, Book 2 is available in Kindle and Print and Barnes and Noble Print
When Love Survives, Vampires in Manhattan Book 1 is available in Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Smashwords,
Nights of Passion 