Interview with MJ Williamz author of Lessons in Desire |

Before I introduce today’s author, I want to take a moment to say my thoughts and prayers are with Las Vegas.

And now for today’s guest post. Bold Strokes Books author MJ Williamz is here to chat about life, writing, and her latest Lessons in Desire. Also, she’s giving away one copy of Lessons in Desire to a lucky winner. Details can be found below.

Please welcome MJ Williamz.

Before we begin, I want to extend a hearty hello, or should I say ‘Hey dude,’ from one Californian to another.

Hey Dude, right back atcha. And thanks for taking the time to interview me. I’m honored. I really appreciate this opportunity and would actually like to take advantage of it by giving away a free book, if that’s okay?

You’ve lived in California, Oregon, and Texas. Has each region and the corresponding experiences influenced your writing? If so, how?

I’d say so. I started writing when I lived in a small town in Northern California – Chico. I loved living there and the laid back attitude really influenced my writing. I was working a dead end job at the time, which is where the desire to write again began to burn.

Portland was great. It was so liberal and had such a healthy lesbian population. There was lots of people watching to do and that definitely inspired me. I was living in Portland when I was first published.

I’ve only lived in Houston three years, but I moved here to be with my wife and she’s a definite influence on my writing. Especially when she’s writing because she pushes me to dig deeper and write better. She’s a really good author and I strive to be as good as she is.

You’re currently living in Houston. What was it like living through Hurricane Harvey?

Hurricane Harvey- the bastard! My wife, Laydin, and I were quite fortunate in that the water never came into our house. It flooded the street a couple of times and we saw pictures of the bayou across the street from the backside of our house and how close it actually got to us. We were definitely lucky.

But it was terrible to watch the television and see what so many of our neighbors were going through. We are eternally grateful and humbled to have been spared.

On Wednesday after Harvey hit we set off to find the sister of a friend of our who’d taken shelter in a hotel. The city was like ghost town. It was eerie.

When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

Creative Writing is something I’ve always enjoyed, from a young age. But it was in fifth grade that I announced I would be an author when I grew up. I got sidelined a few times, but kept my eye on the prize and am finally an award winning author.

I see you write erotica, romance, and horror. How do you juggle all three genres and have you ever blended all of them into one story?

LOL I don’t know that I’ve incorporated all three necessarily. But I’ve published quite a few erotic vampire stories. And, according to Meatloaf, two out of three ain’t bad. (I’m showing my age there.) Also, my books are all erotic romance, so there’s erotic content in them, but they all have a love story in them, as well.

Which lesfic authors have influenced your writing?

Radclyffe, of course. Meghan O’Brien is another solid influence. Larkin Rose definitely influenced me.

You’re married to a fellow Bold Strokes author. Do you two ever collaborate on stories or talk each other off the ledge when writing your own works?

Laydin Michaels is a terrific author and I’d love to collaborate with her. But, our genres are like night and day. She writes suspense/intrigue and I write erotic romance. So I don’t know that we’d ever collaborate on a book together, unfortunately.

We do, however talk each other off the ledge, as you say. We bounce ideas off each other and use each other for opinions and guidance on a regular basis. And when one of us is stumped, we use the other as a sounding board.

Can you tell us about your new release and how the story came to be?

Ah yes, Lessons in Desire. This book actually started with a name. Crockett came to me one day and I really liked it. So then I had to figure out what sort of job a Crockett Devine would have. She sounded like an English teacher to me. So I made her an assistant professor at my alma mater. The idea that she would get involved with a student seemed natural and lent itself to an easy conflict. I really enjoyed writing this book because it took me back to Chico in my mind.

You have an exciting week coming up. Can you fill us in?

Sure! Women’s Week – one of my favorite events of the year is coming up. October 9-13, to be exact. Women’s Week takes place in Provincetown, MA, a very gay little town on Cape Cod. I’ll be doing an erotic reading on Wednesday at Gabriel’s at 2:15. And I’ll be on a panel at the library, A Day in the Life Inside the Writer’s Studio, from 10-11 on Thursday. I’ll also be signing my books at Recovering Hearts Wednesday at 3:45. I’ll have a book that’s coming out in December, Hookin’ Up, that will be available during Women’s Week. If you’re around, please come up and say hi.

Lastly, if you had to give one piece of advice to aspiring authors, what would it be?

READ! Read everything you can get your hands on. WRITE! Write every day whether you’re feeling it or not.

Oh – that’s technically two pieces of advice. Hope that’s okay. Math never was my strong suit.

LESSONS IN DESIRE

E-book $9.99
Paperback $16.95
Release Date: September 12, 2017
Romance

Crockett Devine is a butch playboi and assistant professor of English. She wants forever someday, but not today. Until she meets Gina, her wingman Melinda’s TA, and sparks fly immediately. They’re falling hard and fast for each other until fall semester starts and it looks as if they’ll crash and burn. When their hot and happily ever after is cooled by academic politics, Crockett insists they see other people despite Gina’s protests.

Will they be strong enough to withstand the temptations of their unwanted lessons in desire? Or will they give in and lose each other for good?

Bold Strokes Books / Amazon US /Amazon UK / Amazon CA / Amazon AUS

MEET THE AUTHOR

MJ Williamz was raised on California’s central coast, which she left at age seventeen to pursue an education. She graduated from Chico State and it was in Chico that she rediscovered her love of writing. It wasn’t until she moved to Portland, however, that her writing really took off, with the publication of her first short story in 2003.

MJ is the author of a dozen books, including three Goldie Award winners. She has also had over thirty short stories published, most of them erotica with a few romances and a few horror stories thrown in for good measure. She lives in Houston with her wife, fellow author Laydin Michaels, and fur babies.

Website / Twitter / Bold Strokes Author Page

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