Guest Author, Marianne Arkins

Today we welcome Samhain author and fellow Rose, Marianne Arkins. Marianne is also one of the two Powers That Be over at Long and Short Reviews, where I hang out the first Thursday of each month for my Balance with Liana chat. When you're done here, I highly recommend visiting Marianne's website and checking out her excerpts, reviews and trailers for her wonderful stories.

Who are you?

I’m a wife, mother, daughter, sister, teacher, friend... I write, build and run websites, teach my daughter, walk my dog, love my husband. I write because I must, and would do so whether I was ever published. I love warm weather, Diet Coke with Lime, Chinese food (the spicier the better), my mother and my friends. I can’t live without my computer, and am a compulsive checker of email. To quote the immortal Popeye, I am who I am.

What type of stories do you like to write and why?

Always romance, always happy ever after... but aside from that, I dabble in everything. I’ve written vintage romance, comedy, mystery, westerns, fantasy and more. But, I write romance because I like stories that are uplifting and positive and leave you warm and fuzzy inside when you’re finished.

What type of stories do you like to read and why?

I like to read just about anything – as long as it has a happy ending. I don’t read sad, I don’t read for edification (unless you count occasional non-fiction), I don’t read Oprah selections. I prefer romance, but also stray into science fiction, fantasy, mystery, westerns, young adult and more.

When do you write?

I do my best writing in the morning, but I like to brainstorm at night, before bed, when I’m a little loopy... I think it lets the brain go places it wouldn’t normally go.

When do you read? Where?

I read anytime, anywhere. I’ve been known to read while stirring soup, while eating, before bed, while waiting for internet pages to load, in the waiting room of ... anywhere... is there ever a bad time to read?

Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?

That’s tough for me to answer – I never work on only one project! I have a fantasy (17,000 words so far), a comedy (45,000 words), another vintage set in 1934 (in its infancy), and a mystery (complete and in edits). I get inspiration from everywhere. I work, quite a lot, with writing prompts. The comedy I’m writing actually started with one line I was given. The mystery from a challenge I gave myself (write a secret baby cowboy story). The vintage sprung from something I stumbled across while writing my other vintage, “Miles From You”. Ideas are everywhere... you just need to keep your eyes open.

How long did you write seriously before your first book was published?

I’ve actually been writing nearly as long as I remember. I wrote my first novel in fourth grade, I wrote a mystery novel for submission to the Avon Teen Novel Writing contest when I was seventeen, the same year I wrote my first science fiction novel with a friend, and another mystery novel with another friend. There were a few years I didn’t do much writing, but it’s always been there, in my brain, all the time and I always returned to it. Most recently, I started writing seriously about six or seven years ago. I got my first contract for a short story, “Now That We’ve Found You” from The Wild Rose Press in 2006 and it’s all been a blur since then.

Why do you write?

Because I can’t NOT write. It’s that simple.

About the Author: Marianne was born in California, met her husband in Colorado, got a puppy and got pregnant, then moved with the group of them to the frozen north of New Hampshire where her thin blood keeps her indoors six months of the year. It's the perfect scenario for writing! She has a novel, "One Love For Liv" available in print on December 29th, and a novella "Kitchen Matches" available from Samhain Publishing. She also has eight published stories with The Wild Rose Press. Check out her website or blog for more information or to see what's going on inside her brain. If you dare.