Melissa Marr: she set up this community, so she must be an intrepid soul. She proves this again when faced with an interviewer asking Extremely Inappropriate Questions.
Ink Exchange, set in the same world as the best-selling Wicked Lovely, came out two days ago: read what its author has to say about...
SARAH: What or who were your early influences? I know that you come from a literary (Rossetti-lovin', which is deeply cool) background, so did you start with The Classics or did you read fantasy as a kid?
MELISSA: Growing up, I read everything I could get my hands on. When I ran out, I re-read or read the dictionary. My uncle teaches Victorian Lit, so for as long as I can remember he'd show up with boxes of classics, philosophy, murder mysteries, and mythology books. My grandmother read romances, fairy tales, and folklore. My mother read romances, ghost stories, art history, and folklore. I read it all. In midddle school, I discovered fantasy (by way of things like Dragonlance & Dragonriders of Pern). In high school, I met guys who lent me more such books--and then one who took me to my first used bookstore where we bought bags of SFF. It wasn't until college where I realized that there were "genre biases," and it wasn't until I started writing that I realized how many people don't read all over the store/lbrary. I flit. I did growing up, & I do now. I like it that way.
SARAH: Given that you do have that literary background, how did you become drawn to urban fantasy? An idea that couldn't be denied? A wish to take urban fantasy in a new direction?
MELISSA: My introduction to "urban fantasy" was from lit--folklore and classics like Shelley's "Mortal Immortal," the British Romantic poets, Chaucer's Wife of Bath, Shakespeare, et al. It was also the source of my childhood stories, so I blame Keats and my Grandmother for my interest in it.
I don't think I've ever had the urge to take text in new directions. I'm not doing anything new. I'd doing what folklore & fairy tales have done for centuries--old tropes in new settings, modifying the parameters for current setting. It's what I like about long-reaching text study. I can read Keats and listen to the radio and find the same core issues re-cast in new words. The slang, the clothes, the nuances, these may be different, but the core is the same. I like that.
SARAH: Onto a vital subject - hot guys. We all know that supernatural beauties like Meyer's Edward Cullen get a lot of attention, but in your books the human boys often take centre stage. Are characters like Seth meant to say that it's probably best not to go for someone 35358 years old, no matter how dazzling they are, or is it simply that you thought human boys should be given a chance to represent?
MELISSA: LOL. You really do ask the best questions, Sarah. Thank you.
I guess I have fairy tale hangups. First, I thought that the default (of course she hooks up with the immortal) seemed too predictable/boring. Secondly, I have an intense dislike for "fate" determining a person's path. That's not "happily" ever after; it's a nightmare. *shudder* And third, the big hangup, is the power dynamic thing.
I like beauty and the beast/animal bridegroom tales as much as the next fairy tale fan, but contextually, those were didactic tales that were useful in emphasizing the "make the best of" the arranged marriage and that the older monstrous spouse could be "tamed" by purity and obedience. *sigh* Come on? Really? If I'm pure and do what I'm told, I can change a monster? I call bullshit on that one. The implicit message there is one that steals female volition and implicitely condones men behaving badly. It's predicated on an outdated didactic model. Ugh. I guess I just don't find that romantic or healthy. Equality, assertiveness, and experience are far better, IMHO.
SARAH: A lot of urban fantasy is funny, with snarky protagonists possibly derived from Buffy. Since you do deal with such serious subjects (issues of consent loom large in WICKED LOVELY and we hear, even larger in INK EXCHANGE) how important is humor to you in your work?
MELISSA: I really enjoy things that make me smile or laugh. (I used to be a big fan of going to see stand-up comedians.) I value things and people that take me away from seriousness, but I lack the ability to create them.
SARAH: Do you have a favorite line from INK EXCHANGE, and will you tell us what it is and maybe why?
MELISSA: I suppose it varies by my mood. This one is from one of the tattoo sections. I wanted to capture the idea of what tattooing is, what it can mean, and how spiritual it can be. As a result, I'm oddly fond of this-- "It looked like a crude handheld sewing machine, and with it he’d stitch beauty onto her body. There was something primal about the process that resonated for her, some sense that after this she’d be irrevocably different, and that was exactly what she needed." The idea of highlighting that more important core of the art--not this "ooh, rebellious" BS--and expressing it pleases me.
SARAH: Body art is an interest of yours that plays a large part in INK EXCHANGE. Do you have other interests that you think end up playing a significant role in your books? Do you find it a way to ground your fantasy, going into fantasyland through 'writing what you know' or is it just that you think these things are wicked cool?
MELISSA: Body art is in the books both intentionally & unintentionally. I personally find decorated bodies more appealing, so I suspect that I see my characters with art as a result. The intentional part though was that I liked the idea of tattoos as agents of change and of communication. That's what they ARE, so why not cast that into a more literal framework?
Other interests . . . Hmm. Bars seems to show up. Leslie (one of the MCs in Ink) waits tables (a job I really enjoyed). Other types of art aside from body art show up (museums, artists, graffiti, photography rambles). I don't know that I mean for it to happen though. It's sort of like my characters being decorated: I mostly just write.
SARAH: Will you tell us a secret about one of your characters? It can be a tiny thing, like Donia's immortal passion for country music or the faery court wearing leaf-based underwear.
MELISSA: Oh dear . . . a secret? Well, Don definitely isn't a country girl. Beira, otoh, was a Connie Francis fan. There's an alt beginning to Ink Exchange where I ended up referencing that, but I switched beginnings and that one never made it past my desk.
SARAH: What are you reading right now?
MELISSA: I read a few books most every week (it's my subsitution for time watching TV--which typically confuses and bores me). A few of my most recent reads are a re-read of Dark Days (Steve Niles--horror/vampire, graphic novel), Ghost Orchid (C. Goodman--adult contemporary fiction), Poison Sleep (TA Pratt--adult urban fantasy); an advanced copy of The Forest of Teeth and Hands (C Ryan--YA), House of Cards (CE Murphy--adult UF), and You Know Where to Find Me (Cohn--YA contemp fiction).
SARAH: In the Smart Bitches' review of INK EXCHANGE, they said that INK EXCHANGE was the kind of book teens should read - did you write it as a book that might teach kids a Life Lesson? Do you plan on these things, or take them as they come and feel pleased if teens do take away a lesson as well as enjoyment?
MELISSA: Ponderings, beliefs, interests, these leak in, but I don't set out to "address an issue." I just write. In revision I do try to make sure I'm not saying anything particularly stupid between the lines, but that's really about as far as I get in the planning part (and is it planning if it's after it's written?). I found it a bit curious that a few early reviews suggested that Ink Exchange was a lesson book. I just scrawled what made sense to me. I wish I had great ulterior motives, but I'm not that complex of a person.
SARAH: You're signed up for quite a few more books set in and around the faery court - do you have any tantalizing things planned for the future that you can tell us?
MELISSA: The rest of the books aren't actually pre-planned: my US editor just asked if I'd contract for "3 more YA books." I have hardcore commitment phobias, so I don't know that I would've been able to sign a contract that locked me in to that many books in a set focus. My editor knows that, so she didn't ask me to be trapped. She's a good person.
What IS set though, already written and in various stages of pre-publication, is a short text (YA, Love is Hell anthology, HarperTeen, Nov08), a manga series (Desert Fey, TokyoPop & HC, starting 09), and an actual sequel to Wicked Lovely (currently called Enthralled, Summer 09). Also in 09, I have a story in an adult anthology with Harper Eos (with Kim Harrison, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson, & Jocelyn Drake).
After that there are 3 more YA novels are under contract to Harper. I know that at least one (possibly 2 or 3) of those is a faery court novel.
Melissa Marr, ladies and gentlemen! Obviously in touch with (among others) the Good Cover Fairies.
Ink Exchange, set in the same world as the best-selling Wicked Lovely, came out two days ago: read what its author has to say about...
SARAH: What or who were your early influences? I know that you come from a literary (Rossetti-lovin', which is deeply cool) background, so did you start with The Classics or did you read fantasy as a kid?
MELISSA: Growing up, I read everything I could get my hands on. When I ran out, I re-read or read the dictionary. My uncle teaches Victorian Lit, so for as long as I can remember he'd show up with boxes of classics, philosophy, murder mysteries, and mythology books. My grandmother read romances, fairy tales, and folklore. My mother read romances, ghost stories, art history, and folklore. I read it all. In midddle school, I discovered fantasy (by way of things like Dragonlance & Dragonriders of Pern). In high school, I met guys who lent me more such books--and then one who took me to my first used bookstore where we bought bags of SFF. It wasn't until college where I realized that there were "genre biases," and it wasn't until I started writing that I realized how many people don't read all over the store/lbrary. I flit. I did growing up, & I do now. I like it that way.
SARAH: Given that you do have that literary background, how did you become drawn to urban fantasy? An idea that couldn't be denied? A wish to take urban fantasy in a new direction?
MELISSA: My introduction to "urban fantasy" was from lit--folklore and classics like Shelley's "Mortal Immortal," the British Romantic poets, Chaucer's Wife of Bath, Shakespeare, et al. It was also the source of my childhood stories, so I blame Keats and my Grandmother for my interest in it.
I don't think I've ever had the urge to take text in new directions. I'm not doing anything new. I'd doing what folklore & fairy tales have done for centuries--old tropes in new settings, modifying the parameters for current setting. It's what I like about long-reaching text study. I can read Keats and listen to the radio and find the same core issues re-cast in new words. The slang, the clothes, the nuances, these may be different, but the core is the same. I like that.
SARAH: Onto a vital subject - hot guys. We all know that supernatural beauties like Meyer's Edward Cullen get a lot of attention, but in your books the human boys often take centre stage. Are characters like Seth meant to say that it's probably best not to go for someone 35358 years old, no matter how dazzling they are, or is it simply that you thought human boys should be given a chance to represent?
MELISSA: LOL. You really do ask the best questions, Sarah. Thank you.
I guess I have fairy tale hangups. First, I thought that the default (of course she hooks up with the immortal) seemed too predictable/boring. Secondly, I have an intense dislike for "fate" determining a person's path. That's not "happily" ever after; it's a nightmare. *shudder* And third, the big hangup, is the power dynamic thing.
I like beauty and the beast/animal bridegroom tales as much as the next fairy tale fan, but contextually, those were didactic tales that were useful in emphasizing the "make the best of" the arranged marriage and that the older monstrous spouse could be "tamed" by purity and obedience. *sigh* Come on? Really? If I'm pure and do what I'm told, I can change a monster? I call bullshit on that one. The implicit message there is one that steals female volition and implicitely condones men behaving badly. It's predicated on an outdated didactic model. Ugh. I guess I just don't find that romantic or healthy. Equality, assertiveness, and experience are far better, IMHO.
SARAH: A lot of urban fantasy is funny, with snarky protagonists possibly derived from Buffy. Since you do deal with such serious subjects (issues of consent loom large in WICKED LOVELY and we hear, even larger in INK EXCHANGE) how important is humor to you in your work?
MELISSA: I really enjoy things that make me smile or laugh. (I used to be a big fan of going to see stand-up comedians.) I value things and people that take me away from seriousness, but I lack the ability to create them.
SARAH: Do you have a favorite line from INK EXCHANGE, and will you tell us what it is and maybe why?
MELISSA: I suppose it varies by my mood. This one is from one of the tattoo sections. I wanted to capture the idea of what tattooing is, what it can mean, and how spiritual it can be. As a result, I'm oddly fond of this-- "It looked like a crude handheld sewing machine, and with it he’d stitch beauty onto her body. There was something primal about the process that resonated for her, some sense that after this she’d be irrevocably different, and that was exactly what she needed." The idea of highlighting that more important core of the art--not this "ooh, rebellious" BS--and expressing it pleases me.
SARAH: Body art is an interest of yours that plays a large part in INK EXCHANGE. Do you have other interests that you think end up playing a significant role in your books? Do you find it a way to ground your fantasy, going into fantasyland through 'writing what you know' or is it just that you think these things are wicked cool?
MELISSA: Body art is in the books both intentionally & unintentionally. I personally find decorated bodies more appealing, so I suspect that I see my characters with art as a result. The intentional part though was that I liked the idea of tattoos as agents of change and of communication. That's what they ARE, so why not cast that into a more literal framework?
Other interests . . . Hmm. Bars seems to show up. Leslie (one of the MCs in Ink) waits tables (a job I really enjoyed). Other types of art aside from body art show up (museums, artists, graffiti, photography rambles). I don't know that I mean for it to happen though. It's sort of like my characters being decorated: I mostly just write.
SARAH: Will you tell us a secret about one of your characters? It can be a tiny thing, like Donia's immortal passion for country music or the faery court wearing leaf-based underwear.
MELISSA: Oh dear . . . a secret? Well, Don definitely isn't a country girl. Beira, otoh, was a Connie Francis fan. There's an alt beginning to Ink Exchange where I ended up referencing that, but I switched beginnings and that one never made it past my desk.
SARAH: What are you reading right now?
MELISSA: I read a few books most every week (it's my subsitution for time watching TV--which typically confuses and bores me). A few of my most recent reads are a re-read of Dark Days (Steve Niles--horror/vampire, graphic novel), Ghost Orchid (C. Goodman--adult contemporary fiction), Poison Sleep (TA Pratt--adult urban fantasy); an advanced copy of The Forest of Teeth and Hands (C Ryan--YA), House of Cards (CE Murphy--adult UF), and You Know Where to Find Me (Cohn--YA contemp fiction).
SARAH: In the Smart Bitches' review of INK EXCHANGE, they said that INK EXCHANGE was the kind of book teens should read - did you write it as a book that might teach kids a Life Lesson? Do you plan on these things, or take them as they come and feel pleased if teens do take away a lesson as well as enjoyment?
MELISSA: Ponderings, beliefs, interests, these leak in, but I don't set out to "address an issue." I just write. In revision I do try to make sure I'm not saying anything particularly stupid between the lines, but that's really about as far as I get in the planning part (and is it planning if it's after it's written?). I found it a bit curious that a few early reviews suggested that Ink Exchange was a lesson book. I just scrawled what made sense to me. I wish I had great ulterior motives, but I'm not that complex of a person.
SARAH: You're signed up for quite a few more books set in and around the faery court - do you have any tantalizing things planned for the future that you can tell us?
MELISSA: The rest of the books aren't actually pre-planned: my US editor just asked if I'd contract for "3 more YA books." I have hardcore commitment phobias, so I don't know that I would've been able to sign a contract that locked me in to that many books in a set focus. My editor knows that, so she didn't ask me to be trapped. She's a good person.
What IS set though, already written and in various stages of pre-publication, is a short text (YA, Love is Hell anthology, HarperTeen, Nov08), a manga series (Desert Fey, TokyoPop & HC, starting 09), and an actual sequel to Wicked Lovely (currently called Enthralled, Summer 09). Also in 09, I have a story in an adult anthology with Harper Eos (with Kim Harrison, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson, & Jocelyn Drake).
After that there are 3 more YA novels are under contract to Harper. I know that at least one (possibly 2 or 3) of those is a faery court novel.
 |
Melissa Marr ink exchange! |
Melissa Marr, ladies and gentlemen! Obviously in touch with (among others) the Good Cover Fairies.
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Comments
--Jeri
Second of all, aaaaaaaaah, Melissa, why isn't there a bookstore closer to me? Because I need that book NOW.
Terri
Thank you for being so much fun to chat with, Sarah.
MM
If I'm pure and do what I'm told, I can change a monster? I call bullshit on that one.
LOL! So true & I love that you said that.
it wasn't until I started writing that I realized how many people don't read all over the store/library
OMG, yes! I've always read whatever struck my fancy, whether mainstream, romance, horror, SF/F, etc. and I so surprised to find out that not all avid readers are created the same.
-- Maria Lima
and as someone who just finished IE: go get a copy now! it was amazing/fabulous/just plain good. :0)