Author Interview: Megan Hussey

by C. Margery Kempe

Available from Melange

I want to welcome Megan Hussey to talk about her new book Mermance.

If you were a book, what would your tagline be?

And she looked so sweet! lol

What inspired Mermance?

While I’ve always loved mermaid legends, I often wondered why few people ever wrote about male sirens; you can’t exactly have one without the other, right? So it’s always been my goal to give the ladies their own sirens; hot and very sensitive mermen who hook up with everyday ladies of the land.

What started you writing romance?

I’ve been writing stories since I could pick up a pen—and ever since college I’ve been a major romance fan. And as much as I enjoy reading romance, I found certain things lacking in much of what I read. Why did the heroines always have to be 25 and a size 1 ½? Why did some of the heroes have to be overbearing and sometimes forceful? I wanted to offer work that stood as a homage to the beauty and sensuality of what I read, but that also offered a feminist take on conventional romantic themes.

How did you develop your craft?

English was always my favorite subject in school, and I hold a journalism and English degree. I also have a cousin and several friends who write romance, and we critique each other’s work. Plus the editors at all of my publishers, Class Act Books, Melange Books, Noble Romance, Phaze Publishing, Tingle Media and Xcite Books UK, have been so instrumental in improving and supporting my writing.

What makes a great heroine?

She has to be strong, funny and relatable.

What’s sexy?

Beautiful men come immediately to mind, lol.

What makes you laugh?

Everyone from the wry writings of Dorothy Parker and Nora Ephron to parody movies like Airplane and The Naked Gun.

Do you ever incorporate real people/events into your stories?

Definitely; I try to keep a notebook with me at all times; I’m sure my friends wonder if they’re going to end up in my next book, anticipating their inclusion with a mixture of excitement and outright fear, lol!

How do you balance writing with the rest of your life?

Writing is my life. I’m also a journalist and I love both jobs.

What’s the most common mistake people make about you?

Unfortunately people tend to make assumptions about a person based on their affiliations; I’m a feminist, I’m an author of erotic romance, I’m blonde. So all told I think just about every joke ever told in the history of the free world in some way applies to me. Lucky me! lol.

What ambitions do you have ahead of you?

I want to continue to write romance, and also to write stories on behalf of nonprofit and philanthropic causes.

What’s the best advice you ever received?

Duck! (said at my nephew’s elementary school softball game)

If money were no object, what would be your ideal vacation?

Europe! The history, the beauty, the men, the culture…the men….

What’s next for you?

More writing!

This is an excerpt from my Melange title Merage: The Magic Kiss. It’s a story in Mermance, and also has been expanded into a novel that will be out around Thanksgiving. Enjoy!

The next morning Candace left the confines of her classic beachfront resort, choosing instead to explore the beach itself; stepping as she did into the realm of another, better world.

Port Emerald Beach, in all its glory, rivaled her wildest dreams—and in more ways than one.

She stepped with careful, halting steps across the beach itself, admiring as she did its smooth bronzed sand and its rich assortment of multi-colored seashells. When she stooped to retrieve one of these gems, an artistic fan shell that glowed in ebullient shades of silver and lavender, she also noticed the fanciful creatures who shared her stretch of beach: the pearl pink flamingo who raced across the sand, wearing what seemed like a whimsical smile, and the ivory heron who stood stock still at the center of the beach, the king of all he surveyed.

Rising to her feet she raised her gaze to the clear blue sky; one dotted with images of gulls in flight, not to mention a noble sun that shone bright and gold overhead.

Flourishing in sunlight was a bounty of flowers that grew at the edge of the shore; everything from ruby red roses to silken crepe myrtle, water lilies in delicate shades of pink, violet and brightest yellow to carnations which matched these vibrant hues.

Ah, but the most beautiful flower reclined just up shore; though she supposed that no being with a bulging chest and strong arms could be classified in such delicate terms. Still his face was beyond beautiful, with its wide dark eyes, full lips and crafted cheekbones.

And his hair, which fell down his back in glorious waves of pure, sheer gold, was downright enviable.

And then, of course, there was the fin….

Oh criminy. You’ve got to be kidding me.

She shook her head in sheer wonder as she noticed the lower half of the reclining young man; one soaked in the crystalline waters that grazed the edge of the beach. As opposed to legs, his lower half converged in a smooth, graceful fin that shone bright emerald in the light of the sun.

“It’s like he stepped right out of my dreams.” She grinned in spite of herself.

In fact, she was pretty sure she was still sleeping at this point; this couldn’t be real, right?

“Only one way to find out.”

She approached the ‘suspected siren’ with halting steps, noticing that—blast him—he got hotter and hotter the closer she came.

Finally she stood right square in front of him, grinning like a self-admitted idiot.

“You’re just beautiful,” she blurted out, nodding to lend credence to what she realized were vague and nonsensical words.

The siren raised his glorious head, greeting her with a slow, sensual smile that stole her breath. His eyes warmed with an aura of blatant sensuality, issuing a sexy promise that resounded in his words.

“Why thank you, Miss.” He crooked his finger in her direction, flipping his tail in a flirtatious manner. “It’s a beautiful morning.” He gestured around him with firm but graceful hands. “Would you like to make love?”

Filed under: C. Margery Kempe, Interview, Kit Marlowe