Patti Roberts and Guests : Ella Medler Author Interview with guest blogger CeCe

About the Author - Ella Medler

I live in Cornwall with my husband and our two teenage daughters who regularly threaten to never leave home (must be my cooking).

Together, we care for a large assortment of pets, some small enough to fit in a fish tank, and some capable of causing you significant injury on impact.

I was born in Transylvania but got chucked out due to my inability to grow fangs and reluctance to sleep in coffins. I studied economics to masters level, and qualified with 93.5% (damn good, considering I really wasn't interested). I wanted to be an archaeologist, travel the world, scrape around in mud and live in squalor. Unfortunately, my mother won that argument, and so, after refusing a teaching post (I never did like school), I started work in business development consultancy roles, where I met my husband, the lucky so and so. The rest is history. If you’re reading this, you’ already know the end of the story.

Martin Little, Resurrected is a quirky and original novel which seamlessly blends the daily irritations of contemporary life in Britain with an unusual and unexpected setting. The storyline is action-packed, moderately thought-provoking and relentlessly funny. In order to rescue the girl with whom he has fallen in love despite his better judgement, Martin has to set aside his snobbish hang-ups and inhibitions and work together with his newly acquired friends, a gang of lawless misfits whom he despises. The plot thickens and picks up pace as the loop of officialdom trips them up and the law threatens to catch up with them. Through all this, Martin has to stay one step ahead and find help where it doesn’t seem possible in order to earn his friends’ and his own freedom. Essentially a light-hearted journey of discovery and self-improvement, the many dizzying twists and heady surprises make this story an engaging read and a real crowd pleaser with universal appeal.

Hi Ella, It's great to have you here with us. Please tell us a little about yourself.

I live in Cornwall with my husband and daughters. I like to smile, laugh and talk a lot, and that is reflected in my writing style: I prefer to put fun into my stories, and all of them tend to turn into full-length novels.

Martin Little, Resurrected. Which genre does it belong to?

It’s a contemporary fantasy, a lighthearted social satire. I have purposefully kept away from the all-too-common wizards, vampires and werewolves and chose to make fun instead of our current lifestyle, customs, behavior and silly society habits such as excessive bureaucracy and extremes in general.

Do you plot a story or just write as the story comes to you?

It depends on the genre. When I write fantasy, I prefer to trust my characters to carry the story forward. They do a brilliant job, and I am only too happy to provide the necessary twists – my brain is never idle. When I write suspense/thrillers I have a well-determined plot. I think the genre requires it. The new genre I’m trying out this year is paranormal romance – yes, it does have vampires in it – and I’m finding this one completely different; I’m still adjusting to it, though my co-author, Kristie Drennin Haigwood is doing a fine job of showing me the way.

What book title are you currently promoting? Blood is Heavier – a thriller about a man who is trying to protect his family. This is part one of a trilogy. The second one in the series is due out in December and the last one in 2013. I am making it free to download until the next book is out, so if I were you, I’d get it now.

Martin Little sounds like a fun character.. How did you come up with his character and his name?

I’m a people-watcher. I created the character by gathering together a lot of my observations about men. It’s quite uncommon for a female author to write in first person from a male point of view, but I think being different is a good thing. Judging by the reviews I received from male reviewers especially, I got it right. Once I had the character, I looked for a name that would suit him best: Martin because it’s not a particularly ‘hip’ modern name, and Little because he imagines himself as being ‘of little importance’ in the universe in general.

Are you working on any other project at the moment?

Yes. I am co-writing a series of paranormal romance books in collaboration with Kristie Drennin Haigwood, the first of which we hope to release this year. I am also working on the second in the Martin Little series, Martin Little Takes Epic Action, and the sequel for Blood is Heavier. And I plan to release a non-fiction Author Resources book in September. Apart from that, most of my work is going into my daily blog which is getting a little overcrowded – I am planning to split it into several strands so that the many Author Spotlights I organize and the book reviews can have a dedicated page, and the book series I work on can each have their own ‘home’, too.

What book are you currently reading?

In the last week I have read two: Cemetery Street by John Zunski, and Unauthorized Access, by Andrew McAllister, which I’ve finished about an hour ago. They were both good reads; both got five star reviews from me.

What do you do when you are not writing?

I edit, or read, or play with my dogs. Or I murder a keyboard. I left it a bit late in life, I know, but I started piano lessons this spring. It was something I’ve always wished I could do, and I got tangled into a half-bet discussion with an old piano teacher who insisted anyone could learn, at any age. Not sure who’s winning the bet at the moment, but I’m not giving up. She’s not wearing earplugs, so I’m taking that as a good sign.

Where can readers and fans find you online?

You can reach me by simply leaving a message on my blog http://ellamedler.wordpress.com/

I’m on facebook and twitter, too, with links from my author website http://www.ellamedler.com/

Blood is Heavier is free to download from:

Smashwords

Diesel

Kobo

and (soon) Barnes & Noble.

Amazon hasn’t price-matched yet, but it’s there, too.

Here’s a link to my author page on Amazon, where you can see all my books

Martin Little, Resurrected is available from

Amazon (paperback and Kindle)