Interview with M.E. Clayton
Published 2022-10-02.
What are your five favorite books, and why?
First Grave on the Right by Jones - This book introduced me to the Grave Series and every book is beyond entertaining!
Nero by Sarah Brianne - The Made Men Series is one of the best I've ever read!
Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire - Every book of this series made me fall in love with the characters over and over again!
Rage of Angels by Sidney Sheldon - This is what a real author's mind is able to produce. Fantastic book!
Paradise by Judith McNaught - A perfectly written love story. Period!
What do you read for pleasure?
Anything, really. I prefer romance with a must have Happily Ever Afters, but I like Horror, Mafia Romance, Murder Mysteries and Young Adult. I'm not a big fan of sci-fi, but I did read and love the Hunger Games and Divergent books.
When did you first start writing?
Writing is always something I wanted to try my hand at, but fear is a powerful thing. Raising two kids, I needed the stability of a steady paycheck more than I needed to chase a dream, so it wasn't until this last year that I decided to give it a go. My children are now grown and I'm in a secure financial place where if I fail at writing, I can still be proud that I tried something out of my comfort zone.
What motivated you to become an indie author?
R. L. Mathewson wrote a book called How to Write, Publish and All That Good Stuff that was so realistically written, it gave me the push I needed to move forward with my dream of publishing. And once I became familiar with Smashwords, that even gave me more of a push. Even though my children are grown adults now, I still have a fulltime job and family and friends I enjoy spending time with. Becoming an indie author helps take off all the pressure of writing as a career.
How has Smashwords contributed to your success?
Smashwords is so friendly, detailed, encouraging...I could go on and on about this site, but I don't have enough time...LOL. Smashwords' approach really feels simple and possible and I'm so thankful for the recommendation to this site!
What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
I love getting lost in the creation of people who I hope readers can relate to.
Who are your favorite authors?
Judith McNaught, Julie Garwood, Julia Quinn, Darynda Jones, Harlan Coben, Sidney Sheldon, B.B. Reid, Sarah Brianne, Jamie McGuire, Lisa Gardner, Sandra Brown, Nora Roberts, Linda Howard, Amanda Quick/Jayne Ann Krentz, Jude Deveraux, Brenda Novak, Allison Brennan....the list can go on forever...LOL.
How do you discover the ebooks you read?
Sometimes by author, but I depend on a lot of the recommendations for me that appear on my Kindle.
Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
Yep! Catching Avery. Even though it's not the first one being published, it was the first one written that kicked off the Seven Deadly Sins Series. It was supposed to be one book that I gave my friend to read as a test to see if I had the talent to write a story. My friend (a very avid reader) came to me and demanded it become a series...LOL! Catching Avery is always going to hold a special place in my heart.
How do you approach cover design?
Because I'm all new to this, I use Adobe Stock, which I absolutely love. It gives me complete control of the cover and how I want it to reflect the pages inside.
Smashwords Interviews are created by the profiled author or publisher.
