Michelle Madow -- Author Interview

I had the pleasure of interviewing one of my favorite authors for the blog and couldn't be more excited to share with you. Michelle Madow is the author of several amazing YA series. If you haven't read any of her books, be sure to check her out! She writes books that appeal to (almost) everyone!

Can you give us a quick synopsis of Elementals, The Secret Diamond Sisters, and The

Transcend Time Saga?

ELEMENTALS: Witches are real. They're descendants of the Olympian gods. And now, five 

witches gifted with elemental powers must fight to stop a war against the Titans. (YA Urban 

Fantasy)

THE SECRET DIAMOND SISTERS: Three sisters from a poor town find out that they’re long 

lost heiresses of a Las Vegas billionaire hotel owner. They’re swept away on a private jet to 

move in with him in a luxury casino hotel that he owns, and are thrown into a high life that they 

never knew existed. (YA Glitzy Contemporary)

THE TRANSCEND TIME SAGA: High school junior Lizzie Davenport has been reincarnated 

from 1815, England… but she doesn’t know it until her soul mate from her past life transfers into 

her high school and triggers her memories to gradually return. But he’s keeping his distance from 

her, and she’s determined to find out why by unraveling the mysteries of the past. (YA 

Contemporary Fantasy)

Each series you've written is completely different. Which series came easiest to you?

Which one posed the biggest challenge?

I love writing in the YA genre because there are so many different sub-categories in it to 

explore! Even though I’ve written in a few of the different sub-categories, my books are all fast 

paced and easy to read. 

None of the series I’ve written came easily—they were all hard work! But the easiest book for 

me to write was the second book in the Elementals series, The Blood of the Hydra. It’s so action-

packed and fun, and I had a blast while writing it. The Secret Diamond Sisters was the most 

difficult series for me to write, because it’s told from four different points of views, so I had 

more storylines to weave together while writing.

Which character from each series do you feel you relate to the most?

That’s such a hard question because I’ve never written a character that’s based off my own 

personality. (I would be afraid to write a character that was TOO similar to myself, because if 

readers didn’t like the character I might take it personally ;). I probably have a mix of Courtney’s 

introversion and her love of books, Madison’s ambition, Nicole’s confidence, and Peyton’s sense 

of style.

If Elementals was going to be turned into a TV show or movie, who would your dream

cast be?

My dream cast as of now is Britt Robertson as Nicole, Drew Roy as Blake, Emma Watson as

Kate, and Marie Avgeropoulos as Danielle. I haven’t found a perfect Chris yet. I’m going to 

have my Street Team help me pick out a dream cast soon, so hopefully they’ll have good 

suggestions!

Elementals: The Blood of the Hydra comes out in April. What can we expect for the

second book in the series?

More action. More adventure. More monster fighting. From the beginning of book 2, it’s clear 

that the Elementals have been training, so they’re much better with their powers. They get out of 

their town and embark on a quest in Greece that parallels Odysseus’s journey in the Odyssey, 

and I loved every second of writing it!

What are your favorite books at the moment? What authors do your readers need to
check out?

I read the first book of The Shade of Vampire series by Bella Forrest in the beginning of the 
year, and since then I’ve been HOOKED! I love vampire stories, and this is one of the best ones 
I’ve read. I’ve already read ten of her books and can’t wait to read the rest of the series! (It’s 
over twenty books long, but I’ve yet to grow tired of them.) 

I’ve also really been enjoying the Air Awakens series by Elise Kova, Shearwater by D.S. 
Murphy, and the Timebound series by Rysa Walker. I’ve been on a time travel kick recently, and 
next on my list to read is The Syndicate by Sophie Davis!

What are your ambitions for your writing career?

In 2016, my goal is to release ALL four books in the Elementals series! I’ve never released 
books this close together before, and I’m really excited to start. (The Prophecy of Shadows came 
out in January, The Blood of the Hydra comes out in April, The Head of Medusa comes out in 
July, and I hope to release the final book in October.) After the Elementals series, I want to 
continue releasing books every three to four months, and to start writing my next series this fall.

What is your writing process like? Where do you like to write & how do you stay focused?

I have a very organized process—first I create a detailed outline for the book. Then I draft it, 
aiming to write a minimum of 1,000 words every day. I use my outline as a map for my draft, so 
I never encounter writers block, because I’ve plotted the book before I even start writing. 

As for the actual writing, I do my best writing in the afternoon. So I take care of emails, 
business, marketing, etc. in the morning. Then I’ll do my writing in the afternoon, and after I’ve 
completed my 1,000 words, I’ll do editing and more marketing in the evening. When I’m 
writing, I write in my bed, with my laptop in front of me. I need complete silence when I 
write—any distraction gets me un-focused and I have a hard time re-focusing, so I keep my 
writing environment as distraction-free as possible.

You're quite active on social media. What is your favorite platform for interacting with
your readers?

My favorite is definitely Facebook—I check my Facebook constantly throughout the day! It’s 
distracting… but so entertaining. I also like Facebook because I feel like the interactions I have 
there are more thought-out and genuine.

What is your favorite motivational quote?

"Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more 
common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a 
proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination 
alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'press on' has solved and always will solve the problems of the 
human race.”
~Calvin Coolidge

What advice would you give to your younger self?

I would tell my high school self to start writing books! I didn’t start writing books until college, 
and wish I’d started earlier. And if I could go back to 2011, when I published my first book, I 
would tell myself that marketing is important, but not to get so involved in spreading word about 
my books that it takes me longer to release my next book. Writing new books should always be 
the top priority!

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

A writer I know once told me, “You have to write one million bad words before you write 
anything others want to read,” and that is so true. Writing is a skill, and like any other skill, it 
takes practice to improve. Experiment with different approaches to writing a novel so you can 
find what works best for you. Most importantly, above anything else, you have to write. Know 
what time of day you get your best writing done, and force yourself to write during that time, 
even if you’re not feeling “inspired.” Writing is work, and it’s not going to be fun all the time. 
There will be parts you will struggle with, that will frustrate you to no end and make you want to 
hit your keyboard, but you need to keep your end goal in mind. Set a minimum goal of how 
many words you can comfortably write per day, and reach that minimum five days a week. Make 
sure your goal per day is attainable for you—if it’s too high, it will be frustrating and will make 
you want to quit. And remember that even if you’re having a rough writing day, force yourself to 
reach that minimum. First drafts don’t need to be perfect, since you will edit it afterward. Once 
your draft is completed, edit to the best of your ability. Show it to friends, family, and teachers to 
ask their advice on how to improve. Once you’ve done all of that, then it’s time to look into 
publishing. And whatever happens, don’t give up! Your first, third, or even fifth book may not 
do as well as you want, but you never know what will happen with books you’ll write in the 
future. The only way to find out is to keep going!

Website: www.michellemadow.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/michellemadow 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/michellemadow 

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/michellemadow 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/michellemadow 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5028484.Michelle_Madow 

Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/1Sjf1cy 

Links to Purchase Books: http://blog.michellemadow.com/2015/11/blog-post.html 

The e-version of my Transcend Time Saga is currently FREE for anyone who signs up for 
my mailing list! I love getting to know my readers, and I don’t send spam. Subscribers can 
choose to opt out whenever they want.

Author bio:
Michelle Madow writes fast-paced YA (young adult) fiction that will leave you turning the pages wanting more!
She's always loved writing stories, but the possibility of being an author used to feel more like a 
dream than a reality. She didn’t share her stories with anyone until her junior year of college, 
when she signed up for an Intro to Creative Writing course. Her teacher and classmates read the 
first chapter of a book idea she had, and they loved it so much that they told her she had to finish 
the book so they could find out what happened next. By the end of the school year, Michelle 
finished that book, which would later be published as her first novel.
Michelle grew up in Baltimore, and now lives in Boca Raton, Florida, where she writes books 
for young adults. Some of her favorite things are: reading, pizza, traveling, shopping, time travel, 
Broadway musicals, and spending time with friends and family. Michelle has toured across 
America to promote her books and to encourage high school students to embrace reading and 
writing. Someday, she hopes to travel the world for a year on a cruise ship.