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Q&A With Molly McAdams

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Q&A With Molly McAdams 

Molly McAdams, who I have the honor of doing this Q&A with, is the New York Times Bestselling author of romantic suspense and contemporary romance novels. In romantic suspense Molly has written the Rebel Series & Redemption Series. In her contemporary romance novels she’s written in anthologies, the and multiple series which are Taking Chances Series, From Ashes Series, Forgiving Lies Series, Sharing You Series, Thatch Series, Brewed Series, Secrets in L.A. Series, & I See You & Lie To Me, which are standalone novels. 

 

Q: So Molly, what fascinates you about writing contemporary romance and romantic suspense? Can you explain to the readers that don’t know, what the difference between contemporary romance and romantic suspense is?

 

A: I love writing romance in general—there’s something about a love story that has always gotten to me! Contemporary romance is fun because I feel like readers can genuinely connect with the characters and stories, whereas romantic suspense is incredibly thrilling because, as an author, I don’t have to follow as many rules. For example, writing an assassin for my readers to fall in love with wouldn’t exactly work in the contemporary world, haha!

The main difference between contemporary romance and romantic suspense is, well, the suspense. Also, for a book to be considered true suspense, there usually has to be a death in the first couple of chapters. So, my mafia characters are usually misbehaving 😉 


Q: When did you realize being an author was your calling?

 

A: I didn’t grow up wanting to be a writer, but I always loved telling stories, so I probably should’ve known much earlier. I actually didn’t even know that I enjoyed writing books until I’d realized that I’d accidentally written one. Before that, I’d just been having fun expanding on incredibly vivid dreams that I’d had. But once that first book was published, I had absolutely fallen in love with the book world.


Q: What is your advice to anyone wanting to write great romantic suspense and contemporary romance? If you deal with writers block what advice would you give aspiring authors on how to deal with it?

 

A: Honestly, the best advice I could give anyone wanting to write a story is: Write the story you want to read. If suspense is it, then go for it, and make sure you leave plenty of twists and turns that will keep your reader captivated and guessing the entire way. If contemporary is that story, then make sure your characters are relatable. I think it’s so important to have a dose of realism in these “escapes” we give readers.

As for writer’s block, I think taking time to step back and reset is so healthy. Personally, I read books that I don’t write (fantasy and paranormal romance), and I think that’s very helpful for me. So, whatever helps give you that mental break.


Q: If you were to write in another genre which genre would it be and why?

 

A: Oh my gosh, I would love to be able to write fantasy or paranormal, but I’ve tried dozens upon dozens of times. When I tell you I’m terrible, I truly mean I am ter.ri.ble.

But I love world building, and I love the freedom of those genres. Literally, anything could happen and that’s an exciting thought.



Q: Is it fair to say that the characters and places in your novels are based off of any people you know or places you’ve been? I love how authors can use real life, people and places to create fictional worlds. 

 

A: Oh, absolutely. Many characters are created from ex-boyfriends—don’t worry, my husband is super aware of this and perfectly okay with it. He always says it doesn’t bother him because he’s been the muse of more characters than any of them, haha! Also, many of the locations in my Brewed series are places that mean a lot to my husband and me. The plantation house was where we got married. The owners have since turned it into a boutique inn, which is why it’s a B&B in the series. And the main street in the series was based off my favorite street in the town we just recently moved to. My husband used to drive me here just so I could see the street because I loved how picturesque it was.


Q: If you’re writing new novels now, can you reveal any details?

 

A: Yes! I’m finishing out my Rebel series now, and I’ve loved diving back into that world. I took a step back to write the Brewed and Secrets in L.A. series, but it was well-timed and necessary. There’s a few-year-gap between books three and four in the Rebel series, and Linger (Rebel #4) will lead into my next series, Henley. So, this is a great way to get everyone back into that world and prepared for the Henley boys.

As for Linger, all I can say is that it is so fun to finally get into Diggs’ head, but my readers really need to hold onto their seats with this one. After years of peace, new enemies are making themselves known and things are getting extremely intense.



Q: What advice do you give to new authors on how to deal with negative reviews, online trolls and unsupportive family and friends who don’t support their writing goals?

 

A: Oh man, the family one is difficult. I think the best thing I can say to that is acknowledge up front where they stand and don’t try to change their minds. As difficult as it is, appreciate who your family is apart from your writing and hope that one day they’ll join in on whatever support system you have already surrounded yourself in.

As for negative reviews and trolls, whatever you do, don’t respond to them. And if needed, just ignore them as best as possible. But try to remember that art is incredibly subjective. We all look at, listen to, and read the same things and view them differently. What someone loves, the next person will hate . . . but here comes another person to love it again.



Q: Does Hollywood have any interest or rights to any of your work? Hollywood is long overdue for originality and they could use more great books as original content in my opinion.

 

A: At the moment, no one has expressed any interest in any of my books. Maybe someday though!