I was born and raised just outside of San Francisco. When I was in elementary school, I won a writing contest. The prize was a trip to an amusement park where the other contest winners and I were given free run before the general public arrived. Greater than the joy of riding rollercoasters without lines, I learned the power of writing– to move people with words.
In high school, I began writing the World of Samar series, based on the rock band Styx’s Kilroy Was Here album. I played that album obsessively as a teen and the story just came to me while listening to it.
Kilroy Was Here was Styx’s response to the hysteria in the media during the 1980s. Some believed certain rock bands were putting satanic messages on records and listeners would be able to receive the message by playing the records backwards. The premise of this album, and so many during that time, was that adults were trying to control the minds of children by denying them their musical expression.
I was fascinated with the idea of mind control and secretly hoped I would develop telepathic powers, so I could do the controlling. Unfortunately that didn’t work out for me, but I could do one better. I could write about a race of people who had that ability, hence the birth of the Stravad.
While attending college at UC Davis, I took a creative writing course, but found the structure to be so restrictive that I changed to a teaching emphasis. Still I continued to write for myself on a battered electric typewriter where the keys would punch holes in the paper if you used the correction ribbon.
It wasn’t until 2009 that I became serious about my writing and went in search of an agent. I found a publisher instead. In November of 2009, my lifelong dream of being a published author came true and Emerald, the first in the World of Samar series, landed on a book shelf.
Last year, I decided to venture into indie publishing with my rock star novel, Ravensong. I love the freedom of indie publishing, and let me tell you, holding the sixth book in my hands is as amazing as the first. That is an experience that will never get old.
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Check out Michelle's work by clicking on the covers below!
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