Welcome to my first author interview! I hope to make author interviews a regular feature of my guest blog spot.

Joining us today is Mercedes Fox, an author with a soft spot for werewolves. Thank you, Mercedes, for taking the time to participate in this interview. Please sit down, get comfortable and let’s begin.

Tell us a little about yourself, Mercedes.
I’ve been writing since childhood but until four years ago I didn’t even think I’d ever see one of my books published. Then when I was shown the Kindle and discovered all the self-published authors I decided it was time to take my chance. My favorite subject to write is werewolves. I like my stories bloody, violent, and explicit. My love of books and reading came from my mother. Everything thing she read I was allowed to read. Being an only child my folks involved me in all family decisions so I was much more mature than most children my age. Then the best man in the world married me 22 years ago and we are the proud parents to three dogs. And he encourages my writing even though he’s never read a word of my books.

What book brings you here today?
Poaching the Immortal

And the blurb is?
Welcome to Wolfcreek, where werewolves are both neighbors and law enforcement.

As deputy sheriff, Ted fights to keep his wolf nature in check. But his life has been rough since the horrific events in Vengeance of the Werewolf, and his instincts scream to run, chase and kill. A passionate hunter, he hopes that a trip to Alaska on a full guided hunt will make him feel human again. But what will happen when he encounters the truth of what they are really hunting?

If there was a film or TV adaptation of your book, who would you like to see play your characters?
I love this question! Here goes: Crystal Applegate: Julie Bowen, Ted Applegate (main character): Matt Damon, Aaron Malster: Viggo Mortison, Andis: Demi Moore, Dave Sandler: David Morrissey, Deacon Eyberg: Burt Reyonlds, Donavon Barrick: Robert Duval, Kit Berzuini: Matt Leblanc, Miles Bobro: John Travolta, Ryann Miccoli: Ryan Gosling.

I choose the actors when I’m writing so I have a face and I base the actor chosen by roles I’ve seen them play and whether I liked the character they are playing. The only actors I choose above that I truly don’t like are Demi Moore and Burt Reynolds. The characters they play in Poaching the Immortal are despicable. MT: Wow, you really put a lot of thought into this. There’s a lot of impressive names on that list.

What do you think of book trailers? Do you have a trailer or do you intend to create one for your own book?
Honestly I’m not sure what the point of these are. I’ve seen a few and they are great. A lot of the authors I’ve interviewed have trailers. I have no plans currently to create one for any of my books.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
I’d like to see me sitting at a table signing books. Perhaps surrounded by my 50+ works (LOL)

Have you always liked to write?
I have. I’ve written stories since childhood. Although my stories weren’t children’s tales. I always wrote in the R rated category.

What writing advice do you have for aspiring authors?
Don’t let anyone put your work down or down play it. Don’t let it hurt when someone close to you thinks and says your work is not serious. And don’t think you can edit yourself. Save some cash and hire an editor before you even think about releasing your book.

Do you read reviews of your book(s)? Do you respond to them, good or bad? How do you deal with the bad?
Yup, I read them. But never ever respond to a review NEVER! The reviewer has their opinion and they aren’t always going to be nice. Just read the review and smile to yourself, maybe call the reviewer a few names to your laptop screen and then forget it. Remember NEVER respond to a reviewer whether it be a 5 star or 1 star review.

What is your best marketing tip?
I’ve been using www.Buffer.com for scheduling tweets for Twitter. I still post regular tweets. I like to chat with my followers and I do look at their tweets and share and comment. I do my best to show my followers that yes I’m an author, but I’m a person too. This has been the best approach to creating my “brand name”. Also since I’ve started my blog I’ve improved my exposure by 100%. And I finally got brave and setup a newsletter email using www.MailChimp.com. Running sales and getting subscribers for my blog posts have made a difference. In the beginning when I was being duped by a vanity publisher, I must have mailed a paperback copy with a letter of my first book to over 100 book stores within a 5 state range of home. Not a one ever responded nor did I ever get any books back so I know they received them. I tried sending out postcards using a mail list purchased from the postal service for specific zip codes and that did nothing. Goodreads and Twitter have been the best avenues for my books.

What is your least favourite part of the writing / publishing process?
I hate going through it the first time and having to fix my messes.

Is there one subject you would never write about as an author? What is it?
I won’t write true anything and I hate politics.

Do you have a favourite conference / convention that you like to attend? What is it?
Not yet. I’ve never attended one yet. But I did purchase a book recently with the info for these so I’m going to find one close to home. Maybe I can make an appearance.

Is there a certain type of scene that’s harder for you to write than others?
No, I’m comfy with just about anything. If anything I get carried away. Gore and sex are my specialities.

What are you working on now?
Vengeance of the Werewolf book 3.

Can you give us a few tasty morsels from your work-in-progress?
A reviewer had commented she’d like to know what the story behind Principal Nico Howell and his broken arm was. I left this open in Vengeance of the Werewolf book 1. I did that purposely. So now I’m going to tell the story. A sample of what I have so far is on my blog: https://mercedesfoxbooks.com/book-working-sample/

What’s something you’re really good at that few people know about?
I love to crochet and I can fold origami cranes like nobody’s business.

What’s an interesting fact about your book?
My werewolves all have tails.

Where did your love of books come from?
My mother. She’s a reading fiend.

What advice would you give to your younger self?
Stay away from credit cards and pay your quarterly tax payments—don’t ignore them.

What would the main character in your book have to say about you?
Ted (Poaching the Immortal) would say he’s glad he’s on my good side. What I did to Andis what horrific.

re your characters based on real people, are they imaginary or a combination of both?
In Life After: Werewolf Domination, I did see some family and friends as certain characters. In the Vengeance of the Werewolf books, only one, Andis, was based on someone. Remember this line: Never piss off an author, they can kill you on paper over and over.

When you’re writing, do you listen to music or do you need silence?
The TV is always on. I like to turn on a familiar favourite movie. It provides background noise and makes me comfy.

Who are your favourite authors, and why?
JK Rowling of course, I’m a Harry Potter freak. RW Ridley (The Oz Chronicles), Suzanne Collins (Hunger Games), Jackie Collins (Lucky Santangleo), Jonathan Stroud (Bartimaeus Cycle), JK Brandon (Howl Series), Rayne Hall (Writer’s Craft), Jim Butcher (Dresden Files).

If you’re an indie author, what’s the best thing about being an indie author?
I have all the power and control.

Where can readers go to discover more about you and your books?
Website / Blog | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn | Pinterest | Amazon Author Page | Goodreads