Cuppa and a Catch Up – An Author Interview with … Melissa Foster

SUNDAY 24th MARCH 2013

I would like to wish a warm welcome to the lovely Melissa Foster, Award-Winning Author of Bestsellers on Amazon Megan’s Way, Chasing Amanda and Come Back To Me. She is also founder of Melissa Foster’s Amazing Support Team #GoTeamPIF that I am honoured to be a part of. Melissa has just released her psychological thriller Traces of Kara, a book that I have just finished reading and that I couldn’t put down! It really had my heart racing!

~Author Bio~

Melissa Foster is the bestselling, award-winning author of three novels, Megan’s Way, Chasing Amanda, and Come Back to Me. She has also been published in Indie Chicks, and anthology. She is the founder of the Women’s Nest, a social and support community for women, the World Literary Cafe, and Fostering Success. Melissa is currently collaborating in the film production of Megan’s Way.

Melissa hosts an annual Aspiring Authors contest for children, she’s written for Calgary’s Child Magazine and Women Business Owners Magazine, and has painted and donated several murals to The Hospital for Sick Children in Washington, DC. Melissa is currently working on her next novel, and lives in Maryland with her family. Melissa’s interests include her family, reading, writing, painting, friends, helping women see the positive side of life, and visiting Cape Cod.

Melissa is available to chat with book clubs and welcomes comments and emails from her readers. Visit Melissa on The Women’s Nest or her personal website.

~Synopsis~

Kara Knight can’t wait to leave her hometown for the promise of nursing school and a fresh start on her future–leaving behind an over

protective mother, a broken heart and painful memories. However, twenty-five miles away, the twin she doesn’t know exists is determined to be reunited with the sister he cannot forget. Kara is abducted and thrown into her obsessive captor’s delusional world. As the past she thought she knew unravels around her, Kara struggles to make sense of the memories that come creeping back, threatening her sanity and her safety. Meanwhile, Kara’s mother races against time to save the daughter she fears she will lose when a long-held secret is revealed. The hours tick away as her captor plays out his plan–to take Kara with him into death at the exact moment of their birth, never to be separated again. TRACES OF KARA is an action packed, pulse pounding psychological thriller/suspense novel that features a determined killer who slowly loses his grip on reality as his carefully detailed plan starts to fall apart and a heroine determined to move forward with her life who now must reconcile everything she believed to be true about her family with the reality of their tragic past.

Now get all snug and cosy as we catch up with the lovely Melissa Foster …

Hi Melissa and welcome! It’s great to have you here.

Thank you, Gemma! I’m excited to be chatting with you today.

Where did the inspiration behind Traces of Kara come from?

We recently moved into a small town, and one night we went exploring, and we happened upon a power plan that I didn’t know existed. I could not turn away from it. I actually got out of the car and stood and stared at it for about twenty minutes with my kids freaking out in the car because it was so creepy (Dad was in the car with them, they were really fine). I knew at that moment that something had to happen in that building!

How would you compare writing this book with Megan’s Way, Chasing Amanda and Come Back To Me?

TRACES OF KARA was very difficult for me to write. I’m not used to writing such dark fiction, and I didn’t expect the story to turn as dark as it did. I actually found myself getting sucked into the underworld darkness. When I’d sit down to write, I climbed into a deranged man’s head instead of a troubled woman’s head (like with my previous books), and I had to become him for hours each day. I found that my outlook changed while writing this book—I was gloomy a lot, obviously taken from the character.

How did you start writing? Was there a particular book or moment in your life that spurned you on?

Because I had small children, I had to wait 15 years from the moment I knew I wanted to write, until I actually began writing. And once the kids were all in school full-time, I sat down at my computer and have never looked back.

How do you organise your writing time?

I’m very stingy with my writing time. Monday through Friday, I write from 9-2, and I only get up from my computer under duress. I do take social media breaks (I’m a chataholic after all!), and I take about 3 minutes to eat lunch while I write, but other than that, Once I’m in a character’s head, I remain there until I absolutely have to pick up my children.

Where is your best ‘writing space’; the place where you feel comfortably locked away from the world and able to let your creative juices flow?

Without a doubt, in my office. I LOVE my new office. It’s filled with windows and has glass French doors, there’s a treadmill desk so I can write and walk at the same time, and the music is ALWAYS on (and loud!). When we built our house I had my office cut in half. I love cozy spaces, and mine suits me just perfectly.

Oh my god I LOVE the treadmill desk idea! Maybe one day I will copy you …

And finally, tell us an interesting fact about yourself that not many people know.

Ah, secret time! I’m not sure that there’s anything interesting about me, lol. I did martial arts for a few years and was two belts away from black when I stopped (I miss it). I love fruits and veges, and I get cranky if I don’t get outside. I hate television (but will watch with my hunky hubby and kids), love to go to the movies, and will dance in the rain any day of the week.

Thank you for being here today Melissa.

Gemma, you are such a bright light in my world. I see you in so many realms; social media, private writer’s groups, various blogs—you’re a joy to interact with and I love your high energy. Thank you for hosting me today and sharing your blog and readers with me. xox

~Where to find Melissa Foster~