It's Finally Friday! (10): Interview with M. Leighton

Hi lovelies! This week on It's Finally Friday!, we have M. Leighton, author of the Blood Like Poison series, the Madly series, and several other YA and adult novels. I'm definitely a fan of For the Love of a Vampire (Blood Like Poison #1) and am hoping to read the next two books soon. Paranormal and contemporary fans, be sure to check out M. Leighton's books! And now, without further ado, the interview. :)

What is your favorite book of all time?

Probably Wolf and the Dove by Kathleen Woodiwiss. It’s one of the first romances that ever really got it claws into me.  It’s old school, historical, but it’s delicious!

What was your inspiration to write your first book?

As cheesy as it sounds, Twilight.  LOL  I read those books and fell so in love with the characters that I didn’t want to see them go. It was like losing friends.  So I decided I’d write some friends that I could completely control, that would stay around until I let them go and not one moment before.  That first book, an adult paranormal romance written about four years ago, started me on a path that would forever change my life.  And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

What is one book you wish you had written?

Harry Potter or Twilight.  They are both such brilliant series. I only wish I could pen something so epic.  I guess that’s every writers dream. Not just for the success, but to be the mind behind characters that millions of people fall deeply in love with. 

Why did you start writing books for young adults?

There’s something magical about that time in life that doesn’t occur at any other time.  Everything is new and so many experiences are lying out there in the future.  It’s an amazing and fresh time.  

Are you currently working on anything new? If so, can we get a clue on what it is ;D?

Right now, I’m finishing an independent book so that I can begin work on the final book in the Wild Ones series.  It is about a member of Saltwater Creek, the band that Trick and Rusty played in.  He has a problem with a…certain kind of addiction and he meets a girl that changes his life in ways he never dreamed possible.  And he provides for her a glimpse into something she’s never experienced before—craving.

Any tips or tricks for aspiring writers?

Write every day.  Until you finish that first book, write every day.  It’s too easy to “lay down your pen” and never pick it back up again, especially when you’re frustrated or discouraged.  So write every day until you finish it. You won’t regret it.

What is your writing atmosphere like?

Quiet.  LOL  I have to have absolute quiet when I write.  My office has two huge windows in it so that I can look outside when I’m thinking, but there is no television, no radio and no distractions otherwise. And that’s just the way I like it. :)

Speed Round Questions 

Favorite food?

Chocolate.  Of any kind. 

(We totally approve. :P)

If you were stranded on an island, what 5 things would you take? One person=one item!

My hubby, a flint, some kind of soap or body wash (I’m a clean freak), the start of a grapevine (so I can have both fruit and, eventually, wine) and the world’s biggest box of Godiva

Turtle or fish?

Turtle, turtle!

Reading or writing?

Yikes!  Writing?  And then, years later, I can read them, too

Print books or e-books?

Print.  I still love a paperback

Favorite book store?

Any kind of hole-in-the-wall that sells beat-up paperbacks

Favorite city in the world?

New York. Well, at least certain parts of it.  LOL

About For the Love of a Vampire (Blood Like Poison #1)

Like most seventeen year olds, Ridley Heller thought she had her future all planned out. What she wanted most in life was to get out of small town Harker. Her only goal was to keep her mouth shut and her grades high so she could win a cheerleading scholarship to Stanford. But that was before she met Bo.

In Ridley’s wildest dreams, she could never have planned for someone like Bo, for a love so intense it left her breathless. No human girl could.

A haunting stranger that watched her from afar, Bo stole Ridley’s heart from the moment she laid eyes on him. But he has secrets. Bo’s a vampire. Both his past and his present are a danger to Ridley, but the biggest threat is not her blood; it’s her heart. He’s feeding a thirst for revenge that will cost him his life, and it may already be too late.

The more darkness Ridley uncovers, the more she realizes that her life will never be the same—with or without Bo. Can she sacrifice her future and her heart for someone who has a death wish?

About the Author

I was born and raised in the United States, and I’ve lived in several of the fabulous fifty. Though I currently live in the deep South, I spent much of my childhood up North and hope to return there one day. A few other things about me: I believe that sometimes you have to look really, REALLY hard to find the good in people, but it's there. I believe that I'm shrinking (I swear five years ago I was two inches taller). I believe my husband is quite possibly one of the most amazing men in the entire world (I can't be sure because I haven't met all of them). I believe coffee and chocolate, when combined, could be the basis for world peace. I believe that Jesus rocks and communism doesn’t. I believe that white makes me look fat and black collects lint. I believe summer's too hot, winter's too cold and fall was made for football. I like dogs better than cats and the first movie in a trilogy is invariably the best. But most of all, I believe that love conquers all.