Author Interview: Markie Madden

I want to welcome author Markie Madden who is with us today and has kindly agreed to an interview.

GP:  Tell us about yourself what do you do when you aren’t writing?

MM:  When I’m not writing, I’m marketing or promoting for myself or other authors. When I had cancer, I lost my job and the government considers me disabled, so I do what I can do from home most of the time. When I’m not writing, editing or promoting, I hang out with my family, my 3 rescue dogs, and my horse (who is featured on the cover of my book Keeping a Backyard Horse).  I’m also an amateur photographer and am learning how to photoshop pictures.

GP:  How would you describe your books to people who’ve never read your work?

MM:  I have a little something for everyone. Unlike many authors, I’ve yet to develop my specific genre, though I hope I’m one step closer to that with my Undead Unit series (crime/paranormal). But I’ve also written and published a memoir, a self-help horse care guide, and a dystopian/romance/fantasy, and I’ve published a pagan reference for another author.

GP:  It seems many authors have been writers since youth. When did you begin writing and what made you decide to begin publishing your work?

MM:  The first time I remember writing specifically was in 4^th grade. We had a teacher who would go around and draw a squiggle on our paper in a notebook, and the assignment was to finish her squiggle into a drawing and write a short story about the drawing. I sure wish I could remember her name, because I’d love to look her up and thank her, because look where I am now! My dystopian romance was actually written while I was still in high school, though it’s been through a few revisions since then.

GP:  For new authors what do you believe is the best advice they could receive?

MM:  I had an English teacher in high school who I will never forget. He was a self-published author (back in the day where an author could take a manuscript to a printer and pay up front for X number of books to be printed) and he encouraged all of us in our writing. He even took me specifically (out of all the students) to a Writer’s Conference at the college. His advice to me was, “Whatever you do, never let go of the dream. Never stop trying. You may not be able to publish now, but don’t give up!” I’d love to look him up, too, but I think I heard he’s passed on now.

GP:  How has publishing changed the way you view your writing? If so tell us in what ways.

MM:  One way publishing has changed my writing is in formatting. Okay, back when I first started writing it was in a spiral notebook or on looseleaf paper that could be put into a binder (this was before the world of Word Processors and such). I’ll date myself by saying the first computer class I had was called Programming in Basic (no Windows yet) and that I learned how to type on a (gasp) typewriter! So now we have things like Microsoft Word, OpenOffice, WPS, and Scrivener (me personally, I use Scrivener for most everything, WPS for what I must have in a .doc format, such as print files), and this changes things. We have to think about how will this look like as a printed page? Will it be the same as an e-book page (no, it’s not),

GP:  Some authors have stories they outline in detail and follow while writing the story and fluffing it out; while others have a basic story idea and just start writing and let it develop as it is written. How would you describe your style in this regard?

MM:  I’ve never outlined before. When I say before, I really mean “before cancer”. Because since then, I’ve done a lot of things I never needed to before! Even back when I had to outline, such as for school assignments, I usually wrote the paper first and then did the outline from the finished assignment. Unless I had to turn the outline in before the whole paper was due. But in writing my latest book, Fang and Claw, I made frequent use of some of the special properties my Scrivener writing software has. I could make notes of characters’ physical descriptions and even place settings, so I wasn’t constantly back-tracking just to find out what color hair so-and-so had.

GP:  Tell us about your most recent book or series.

MM:  My latest book is really exciting! Of course, I think it’s wonderful, but I’m biased LOL No, the best part of the Undead Unit Series is the fact that it will appeal to the crime reader, the paranormal reader, even the romance reader (my first review WAS from a romance reader, and she said that even though I hadn’t gotten her to forsake romance, she was still going to read the rest of the series!). Here’s a blurb for the whole series:

Over a hundred years in the future, it’s a world where supernatural beings live and work among humans. Of course, the government has forced them to take the Undead Oath in order to gain citizenship; they must not prey on humans for food. They’re often given tasks in jobs suited for their species, but just as among other minorities, they must struggle to prove themselves.

As if dealing with racial prejudice isn’t enough, there is also a criminal element, just as there is with any group of beings living in society. The Dallas Police Department has introduced an elite new squad made up of Undead officers and detectives. This unit is dedicated to solving crimes involving Immortals. Headed by veteran detective Lacey Anderson, can the Undead Unit overcome its obstacles, both internal and external, or will it be doomed to failure?

Here’s the blurb for Fang and Claw specifically:

Lieutenant Lacey Anderson of the Dallas Police Department heads up a elite new squad dedicated to solving crimes involving Immortals like herself. Lacey, a Vampire left for dead when her family was slaughtered by Werewolves, still has nightmares about the attack.

Detective Colton Scarber is her unwilling partner and second-in-command. He’s a Werewolf, a descendant of those who killed Lacey’s coven. She’s unaware of this, but she doesn’t trust him from the start. When the fragile beginning of the team is threatened by the truth, can they learn to trust one another as partners must, or will the Undead Unit be doomed to failure?

A mysterious suspect and strange physical evidence leads them to solve a case spanning decades, and leaves Lacey with no other choice but to rely on her enemy when her very life is at stake!

GP:  Can you give us hints about what you are working on now?

MM:  I’m currently about 15,000 words into the second book of the Undead Unit series, called Souls of the Reaper. I expect it to be released early next year. I’m also working on a rewrite of my dystopian/fantasy/romance, but I don’t have any deadline to announce on that book yet. Plus I’ve got a medical thriller I’m working on, and possibly some other ideas. I won’t know until the Muse speaks to me!

GP:  Where can readers find more about you and your books?

MM:

Thanks,

Markie

https://metamorphpublishing.com/

https://metamorphpublishing.com/the-undead-unit-series

http://www.facebook.com/booksbymarki

https://www.youtube.com/c/MarkieMaddenMetamorphPublishin

http://geni.us/3ZS

https://play.google.com/store/books/author?id=Markie+Madde

Smart links to books:

My Butterfly Cancer: http://geni.us/46PE

Once Upon a Western Way: http://geni.us/26Fb

Keeping a Backyard Horse: http://geni.us/47ot

Fang and Claw: http://geni.us/4BBh

 

GP: I want to thank you again Markie for joining us today. To my readers, come back on Friday for a review of “Fang and Claw” on the Friday Book Review post. Then order the book available on Amazon.

Happy Reading!

Grandma Peachy