Melody Johnson is the award-winning author of the sci-fi romance novel, Beyond the Next Star (Love Beyond Series, book 1) and the gritty, urban fantasy/ vampire Night Blood series, published by Kensington Publishing/ Lyrical Press.
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Sight Beyond the Sun is book 2 in the Love Beyond series. In this enemies to lovers alien romance, separating truth from lies is impossible in the game of spies... especially the lies you tell yourself.
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Melody participates in numerous local author conventions, book fairs, and author signings in the southeast Georgia and Florida areas. To see her schedule of events and availability for book signings, click on the button below!
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ANNOUNCEMENTS & UPDATES
KEEP UP TO DATE ON MY WRITING LIFE
KEEP UP TO DATE ON MY WRITING LIFE
Vampires (Night Blood Series)
What compelled you to write THE CITY BENEATH?
Traditionally, I've always written contemporary love stories, but I've read and adored the action and dark mystery of vampires my whole life. Combining the foundation of vampire classics with the edge of more contemporary work was very important to me. I wanted The City Beneath's vampires to be more animal than human, more vicious, dangerous and instinctive than other portrayals without compromising the ancient, otherworldly intelligence that makes them so romantic. Many paranormal love stories focus on the love, innocent vs. vampire, so I wanted to write about the gritty underbelly of the city and how a strong female lead, familiar with the struggle to survive the dangers of everyday life, would stand up against the threat of vampires.
If THE CITY BENEATH were to be made into a movie, who would you have play Cassidy and Dominic?
I can think of a few actors who might fit the bill, but my favorites would be Natalie Portman and Henry Cavill.
Who is your favorite character in THE CITY BENEATH?
Although I love all my characters, I've got a particular soft spot for Officer Harroway. Although not a main character, his history with Cassidy was interesting to develop and their banter was fun to write. I definitely have a special fondness for Harroway that I look forward to further fleshing-out in future installments of the series.
Did you do a lot of vampire research for THE CITY BENEATH? How much of it is based on vampire lore and how much of it is from your imagination?
My research was based on a lifetime love of reading vampire novels and watching movies, the classics and contemporary alike. Some of the most influential works and my favorites include Dracula, Interview With A Vampire, Queen of the Damned, Underworld, True Blood, Blade, the Anita Blake Series, the Chicagoland Vampire series, the Twilight saga, the Dark-Hunter series, and most especially, the Fever series.
If you could compare THE CITY BENEATH to other books, TV shows, or movies, how would you describe it?
I would describe The City Beneath as most closely comparing to the gritty mystery in the early installments of the Anita Blake series combined with the dark, uninvited romance of the Fever Series and the breathless action of Underworld.
Traditionally, I've always written contemporary love stories, but I've read and adored the action and dark mystery of vampires my whole life. Combining the foundation of vampire classics with the edge of more contemporary work was very important to me. I wanted The City Beneath's vampires to be more animal than human, more vicious, dangerous and instinctive than other portrayals without compromising the ancient, otherworldly intelligence that makes them so romantic. Many paranormal love stories focus on the love, innocent vs. vampire, so I wanted to write about the gritty underbelly of the city and how a strong female lead, familiar with the struggle to survive the dangers of everyday life, would stand up against the threat of vampires.
If THE CITY BENEATH were to be made into a movie, who would you have play Cassidy and Dominic?
I can think of a few actors who might fit the bill, but my favorites would be Natalie Portman and Henry Cavill.
Who is your favorite character in THE CITY BENEATH?
Although I love all my characters, I've got a particular soft spot for Officer Harroway. Although not a main character, his history with Cassidy was interesting to develop and their banter was fun to write. I definitely have a special fondness for Harroway that I look forward to further fleshing-out in future installments of the series.
Did you do a lot of vampire research for THE CITY BENEATH? How much of it is based on vampire lore and how much of it is from your imagination?
My research was based on a lifetime love of reading vampire novels and watching movies, the classics and contemporary alike. Some of the most influential works and my favorites include Dracula, Interview With A Vampire, Queen of the Damned, Underworld, True Blood, Blade, the Anita Blake Series, the Chicagoland Vampire series, the Twilight saga, the Dark-Hunter series, and most especially, the Fever series.
If you could compare THE CITY BENEATH to other books, TV shows, or movies, how would you describe it?
I would describe The City Beneath as most closely comparing to the gritty mystery in the early installments of the Anita Blake series combined with the dark, uninvited romance of the Fever Series and the breathless action of Underworld.
Aliens (Love Beyond Series)
Click on the covers below to view these books on Amazon! They're offered in ebook, paperback and hardcover editions. Beyond the Next Star is also offered in audiobook. Coming soon: Keep your eye out for the audiobook edition of Sight Beyond the Sun!
Witchy Business Series (Short Stories)
Click on a Witchy Business short story cover below, and you'll be directed to the anthology or blog where that story is featured. The anthology cover will be different than the short story cover, but don't worry - you've been directed to the correct book/website to read your selected story.
Author Interview: Let's chat about writing!
How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?
I published my first book--The City Beneath (Night Blood, book 1)—in 2015 with Kensington Publishing/Lyrical Press. The City Beneath was the third full-length novel I’d ever finished and the second I’d pitched to agents and editors in the attempt to acquire a traditional publishing contract. Although I was accustomed to working on deadline for high school and college writing projects, I’d never balanced my writing with a full-time job before. The juggling act became quite the challenge. I was blessed to have signed a four-book deal with Lyrical Press, which meant editing book 1 while writing book 2… and working a 9-5 and moving out of my parents’ house and planning a wedding and and and… and to say the least, it was a crazy year. A fantastic year, but crazy, and it required that I make a huge adjustment in my writing life from writing when I felt inspired to writing whenever the heck I could squeeze in the time to get the job done. At first, the transition was difficult. I felt like I was making compromises and my writing was suffering, but I needed to find a way for the new phases in my life to work. I started waking up earlier, focusing harder, editing fiercer, and by far, I’m a better writer for it.
As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?
My spirit animal is without a doubt a hamster, and I like to think that my precious fur-baby, Benedict, would heartily agree! Same as Benedict, I’m perfectly content to spend an entire day in quiet solitude, enjoying my own company. I prefer to graze on snacks in bed—cheese-its and snickers ice cream bars rather than pellets, of course—and write in the quiet stillness of early morning darkness. But once I’m up and active, I’m a flurry of efficient activity, running on my writing wheel at lightning speed for hours. (Fun fact: can you guess what TV show I was watching when I adopted Benedict? I’ll give you three hints: it's based on a romance novel, it was adapted to a TV series by Netflix, and "Benedict" is the second oldest brother in a family of 8 children.)
Does writing energize or exhaust you?
Writing that first draft energizes me. Meeting new characters, discovering their passions and weaknesses and wounds, watching them meet and kiss and tangle themselves into an impossible situation while falling in love, figuring out the twists and turns and trap doors of their adventure, and forcing them to earn that happily ever after is the absolute best. It’s what keeps me going even when I’m struggling to survive the story as desperately as they are. However, once the first draft is complete, the editing process is another beast entirely. Editing absolutely EXHAUSTS me. I suffered through eleven rounds of edits with my upcoming novel, Sight Beyond the Sun, AFTER having self-edited it. As much as I hate editing however, I love having a published book I can be proud of. Like my characters, I must rise above the challenge to earn my happily ever after.
What did you edit out of this book?
In my newest book, Sight Beyond the Sun, I deleted a lot. More than I ever edited out before, which I know for a fact because I’m a word hoarder: I keep a delete document. In real life, I’m practical about throwing away my junk, but in my writing life, I have a very difficult time letting go. I keep an entire word document dedicated to deleted scenes that will never see the light of day, but without that document, I wouldn’t have the courage to delete anything. And some of the junk I wrote in Sight Beyond the Sun needed desperately to be deleted: 43,496 words of junk to be exact. My junk could be its own novella! Their first kiss, a scene talking about breasts (his alien species develops them during pregnancy, not puberty), bickering that didn’t drive the plot forward, banter that I thought was funnier than it really was, a different beginning, poorly written descriptions of healing tubes and human-eating plants, droning internal monologues that were sabotaging my action scenes… and the list goes on.
What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?
By far, the best money I’ve ever spent as a writer was on my newest book cover. My Night Blood series is traditionally published, which means that my publisher, Lyrical Press, paid all up front expenses, including cover design. My Love Beyond series, however, is indie published, so I invest in all publication fees, including professional edits, formatting software, uploading fees, and of course, cover design. The design for my Love Beyond series, which is sci-fi romance, is especially unique because the heroes in those stories are aliens. For my newest installment in that series--Sight Beyond the Sun (Love Beyond, book 2)—I made the exciting decision to hire an illustrator to design my cover and create a rendering of my characters. His breathtaking artwork was worth every penny.
I published my first book--The City Beneath (Night Blood, book 1)—in 2015 with Kensington Publishing/Lyrical Press. The City Beneath was the third full-length novel I’d ever finished and the second I’d pitched to agents and editors in the attempt to acquire a traditional publishing contract. Although I was accustomed to working on deadline for high school and college writing projects, I’d never balanced my writing with a full-time job before. The juggling act became quite the challenge. I was blessed to have signed a four-book deal with Lyrical Press, which meant editing book 1 while writing book 2… and working a 9-5 and moving out of my parents’ house and planning a wedding and and and… and to say the least, it was a crazy year. A fantastic year, but crazy, and it required that I make a huge adjustment in my writing life from writing when I felt inspired to writing whenever the heck I could squeeze in the time to get the job done. At first, the transition was difficult. I felt like I was making compromises and my writing was suffering, but I needed to find a way for the new phases in my life to work. I started waking up earlier, focusing harder, editing fiercer, and by far, I’m a better writer for it.
As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?
My spirit animal is without a doubt a hamster, and I like to think that my precious fur-baby, Benedict, would heartily agree! Same as Benedict, I’m perfectly content to spend an entire day in quiet solitude, enjoying my own company. I prefer to graze on snacks in bed—cheese-its and snickers ice cream bars rather than pellets, of course—and write in the quiet stillness of early morning darkness. But once I’m up and active, I’m a flurry of efficient activity, running on my writing wheel at lightning speed for hours. (Fun fact: can you guess what TV show I was watching when I adopted Benedict? I’ll give you three hints: it's based on a romance novel, it was adapted to a TV series by Netflix, and "Benedict" is the second oldest brother in a family of 8 children.)
Does writing energize or exhaust you?
Writing that first draft energizes me. Meeting new characters, discovering their passions and weaknesses and wounds, watching them meet and kiss and tangle themselves into an impossible situation while falling in love, figuring out the twists and turns and trap doors of their adventure, and forcing them to earn that happily ever after is the absolute best. It’s what keeps me going even when I’m struggling to survive the story as desperately as they are. However, once the first draft is complete, the editing process is another beast entirely. Editing absolutely EXHAUSTS me. I suffered through eleven rounds of edits with my upcoming novel, Sight Beyond the Sun, AFTER having self-edited it. As much as I hate editing however, I love having a published book I can be proud of. Like my characters, I must rise above the challenge to earn my happily ever after.
What did you edit out of this book?
In my newest book, Sight Beyond the Sun, I deleted a lot. More than I ever edited out before, which I know for a fact because I’m a word hoarder: I keep a delete document. In real life, I’m practical about throwing away my junk, but in my writing life, I have a very difficult time letting go. I keep an entire word document dedicated to deleted scenes that will never see the light of day, but without that document, I wouldn’t have the courage to delete anything. And some of the junk I wrote in Sight Beyond the Sun needed desperately to be deleted: 43,496 words of junk to be exact. My junk could be its own novella! Their first kiss, a scene talking about breasts (his alien species develops them during pregnancy, not puberty), bickering that didn’t drive the plot forward, banter that I thought was funnier than it really was, a different beginning, poorly written descriptions of healing tubes and human-eating plants, droning internal monologues that were sabotaging my action scenes… and the list goes on.
What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?
By far, the best money I’ve ever spent as a writer was on my newest book cover. My Night Blood series is traditionally published, which means that my publisher, Lyrical Press, paid all up front expenses, including cover design. My Love Beyond series, however, is indie published, so I invest in all publication fees, including professional edits, formatting software, uploading fees, and of course, cover design. The design for my Love Beyond series, which is sci-fi romance, is especially unique because the heroes in those stories are aliens. For my newest installment in that series--Sight Beyond the Sun (Love Beyond, book 2)—I made the exciting decision to hire an illustrator to design my cover and create a rendering of my characters. His breathtaking artwork was worth every penny.