Literary Birthday – 25 July – Melissa Marr

Happy Birthday, Melissa Marr, born on 25 July 1972.

Melissa Marr Quotes

1. I eventually realised that good things wouldn’t happen to me if I didn’t make the right choices.
2. I write at night. Generally that involves headphones and loud music and caffeine and darkness. During the day it’s either family time or sleep time.
3. Writing is the fine art of vacillating between crippling insecurity and moments of mad self-confidence… I like the fear. I like proving TO MYSELF that I don’t give up. If you want a bit of advice, that’s the best I have: it’s about proving it to yourself, but know that you will still feel terror and self-doubt every single time. My personal belief is that if it stops being scary, if it stops seeming like I can’t do it, it’s time to stop.
4. The world is too fascinating to limit yourself to one path or one sort of people.
5. I don’t consider writing to be limited to the physical act of fingers on keys, so to some degree I think I’m always writing. Stories simmer in our minds for months or years before they are ready to be served up on to the page.
6. To this day I never go anywhere without my camera, my pen, and music. Those are my devices that I have to have at all times.
7. I read a lot of folklore and history, and I think that’s the biggest source [of ideas] for me. Then I ask, ‘What if?‘ Sometimes, though, a painting or a song might start me on a story.  A dream could (and has) been the start of a story, too.
8. When you are WRITING, it’s time to let your passion and creativity flow. When the book is done, you need to switch to business mode.
9. Letters to agents or editors should read like professional business letters. Don’t let your creative self get in the way of professional interactions. Sometimes that means writing replies but SAVING them as drafts for 48 hours so your mood can level. Being a professional writer (or pro artist, singer, etc.) involves switching modes between creative and practical.
10. He was an answer to a question she’d forgotten to ask.

Melissa Marr is an American author of young-adult urban fantasy novels. She also writes fiction for adults and children. Her books have been translated into 28 languages and been bestsellers in the US as well as various countries overseas. She is a winner of the Romance Writers of America RITA Award. She is best known for the Wicked Lovely series for teens, the Graveminder for adults, and her debut picture book Bunny Roo I Love You for children. Her latest book is A Treason of Magic. Follow her on Facebook.

Source for image: author’s website

by Amanda Patterson
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