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Interview with Loren Rhoads

Published 2016-07-09.
What's the story behind your latest book?
The first chapter of Lost Angels was written as a standalone short story for Brian Thomas. Then he surprised me by writing a second chapter, then a third. Next thing I know, my succubus Lorelei was getting possessed by a mortal girl's soul -- and I couldn't wait to jump back in and continue the story. We wrote a book by accident.
What are you working on next?
I'm working on the last revision of the second half of Lorelei's story. That book is called Angelus Rose and will be published in November 2016.
What is your writing process?
I like to sit in cafes in the morning after I drop my daughter off at school and write for an hour over coffee. I write longhand in a composition book, then go home and type it in, revising as I go. I use Scrivener, which has changed my life when it comes to assembling books. It is amazing.
What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
Wow. Either the heady rush of creating the pictures in my head using nothing but words -- or reading something back later and realizing I wrote it.
Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
The first story I had published was a Lovecraft pastiche about a cabin in the woods. I was in high school. I don't remember the first story I wrote.
Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?
The first grownup book I remember reading is Dracula. I was 10. My mother has a photo of me sitting on a boulder outside of Rocky Mountain National Park, the hardcover book in my lap. Beautiful nature was all around me, but I was completely absorbed by Jonathan Harker's adventure through Romania. I reread the book every couple of years and I always discover something new in it.
What do you read for pleasure?
Anything I can get my hands on. The last five books I've read are Benedict Jacka's Cursed, Necropolis: London and Its Dead by Catharine Arnold, Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire, All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders, and The Secret History of London.
Who are your favorite authors?
Neil Gaiman, Ray Bradbury, Angela Carter
What motivated you to become an indie author?
I ran a publishing company in the 90s and 00s, but I gave that up when I started to sell my own books to publishers like Scribner and Night Shade Books. Now I would like to apply what I learned before to indie publishing.
How has Smashwords contributed to your success?
I'm new to Smashwords, so I can't wait to find out!
Smashwords Interviews are created by the profiled author or publisher.

Books by This Author

This Morbid Life: Essays by
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 57,650. Language: English. Published: October 5, 2021 by Automatism Press. Categories: Nonfiction » Biography » Autobiographies & Memoirs, Essay » Author profile
What others have called an obsession with death is really a desperate romance with life. Guided by curiosity, compassion, and a truly strange sense of humor, this particular morbid life is detailed through a death-positive collection of 45 confessional essays. These emotionally charged essays showcase the transformation of Loren Rhoads into a leading voice of the curious and creepy.
Unsafe Words by
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 57,650. Language: English. Published: October 30, 2020 by Automatism Press. Categories: Fiction » Horror » Weird fiction, Fiction » LGBTQ+ » General
In the first full-length collection of her edgy, award-winning short stories, Loren Rhoads punctures the boundaries between horror, dark fantasy, and science fiction in a maelstrom of sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll. Ghosts, succubi, naiads, vampires, the Wild Hunt, and the worst predator in the woods stalk these pages, alongside human monsters who follow their cravings past sanity or sense.
Angelus Rose: As Above, So Below Book 2 by &
Price: $3.99 USD. Words: 95,660. Language: English. Published: February 11, 2020 by Automatism Press. Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Paranormal, Fiction » Romance » Paranormal » General
After their escape from Lost Angels, the succubus Lorelei and the angel Azaziel want nothing more than to get to know each other better. Unfortunately, all the devils — and angels — of Los Angeles want to keep them apart. If Romeo had wings and Juliet a barbed tail, could they find happiness together in the City of Angels?
Wish You Were Here: Adventures in Cemetery Travel by
Price: $5.00 USD. Words: 85,800. Language: English. Published: November 25, 2017 by Automatism Press. Categories: Nonfiction » Travel » Essays & Travelogues
Nearly every tourist destination has a graveyard. Some graveyards are even tourist destinations in themselves. Wish You Were Here: Adventures in Cemetery Travel contains 35 graveyard travel essays, which visit more than 50 cemeteries, churchyards, and grave sites around the world.
Lost Angels: As Above, So Below Book 1 by &
Price: $3.99 USD. Words: 93,770. Language: English. Published: April 6, 2016 by Automatism Press. Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Paranormal, Fiction » Romance » Paranormal » General
In the days before the Flood, Azaziel had been a Watcher, sent down to help God’s creatures on Earth. Now he’s imprisoned in the Los Angeles basin. The succubus Lorelei only knows that the angel’s fall will bring glory to Hell and acclaim to any succubus who accomplishes it. Of course, it never occurs to Lorelei that Azaziel might try to tame her by possessing her with a mortal girl’s soul...