Today I’m going to introduce you to Melanie P Smith. Melanie was born and raised in Utah and she loves it there. Why?

“That’s easy. It’s the scenery. We have five National Parks here in Utah; Zions, Bryce, Canyonlands, Arches, and Capitol Reef. If you love the outdoors — which I do —it would be hard to find an area that has more beauty than the state I call home. We have mountainous hiking trails, desert backroads great for exploring, as well as lakes and reservoirs that are perfect for swimming and fishing. And, to top it all off, I’m extremely lucky to have an amazing view of the Wasatch Mountains (which are part of the Rockies) from my front yard.”

Melanie is a prolific writer who works in several genres. Her background is in law enforcement. How far does that experience feed into her stories?

“My knowledge and experience definitely play a large part in my writing. They say write what you know. Two of the genres I write in are Criminal Suspense and Police Procedurals. I believe my background helps to make my stories accurate, realistic and exciting. I have to admit, on occasion, a savvy cop or a background investigation also finds its way into my paranormal work as well.”

Of all the genres she has written in, which does she most enjoy writing and reading?

“I love to read, but I can’t say I have a favourite genre. Give me a good story and I’m lost for hours.

As far as writing goes, I could never pick just one genre. I guess that’s why I’m a multi-genre author. Criminal Suspense and Police Procedurals come natural for me. I like knowing I can use my knowledge and years of experience to entertain my readers. My paranormal and fantasy work provides an outlet for my more creative and imaginative side. I enjoy writing both, in different ways.”

She also works very hard on behalf of other independently published authors,producing promotional materials and videos. This requires skills not usually associated with her professional background but it transpires that she did acquire them in her job:

“I guess you never know how your education and experience will help you later in life. I have an associate degree in marketing which gives me a solid foundation to start with when it comes to layout, design, and promotional techniques. I also created a lot of promotional material for the Sheriff’s Office. When you think of law enforcement, you don’t typically think of marketing. However, during my time with the office I was tasked with developing programs and brochures for various events, as well as web design and maintenance, and public safety and education videos — especially for our volunteer Search & Rescue team. All of this combined has given me experience using various computer programs and marketing concepts that I now use to promote myself and others.”

Her book covers, the e-magazine and the promotional videos Melanie produces all look very slick. I think any traditional publisher would be proud of them. I asked if she thinks it is important for independent authors to present an image that matches that of ‘household name’ authors?

“Professionalism is important in any industry and publishing is no exception. Traditionally published authors have the backing of specialists to handle much of the work for them. But I strongly believe, if we want to get noticed, independent authors must find a way to compete in the same market. Eye-catching covers, attention grabbing videos, and interesting promos can help us get noticed. Unfortunately, that’s only the first step. In addition to having an interesting story, we also need to keep that professionalism going with top-notch editing, formatting and content.”

With so many books published, including several series, and all the other work we’ve just discussed, I wondered how she finds the time. How does a typical day in the Smith household look? When and how does she relax?

“When I started writing for fun again, I was juggling a full-time job and trying to write in my spare time. In 2016, I retired from law enforcement and I’m now blessed to do what makes me happy — write. I rarely go a day without writing and if I do, I miss it. Writing as an independent author can be a full-time job, but for me it’s a job that I love. I also enjoy relaxing and I’ve always been adventurous. My husband and I both ride Harley’s and living in Utah gives us a ton of options. There’s nothing like a relaxing ride on a rural back road or taking in all the sights and smells of a scenic forest as you cut through the air on top of a motorcycle. We also love to camp, and Utah offers a ton of places to get out in the wilderness to ride our ATV’s or relax in front of an open camp fire. My motto has always been work hard, then play hard.”

Which aspect of the publishing business does she most enjoy? Which does she wish she didn’t have to do?

“I enjoy writing and I enjoy the comradery I have found with fellow authors around the world. That is the one thing I missed when I retired from law enforcement. I also enjoy helping other authors. I truly believe it takes a village and the more we help those around us, the more satisfaction we get, and the more success we will enjoy.

I am terrible at selling myself and my work. I can do the writing and even create the promo stuff, but when it comes to creating that perfect tagline or selling my work as the next best thing that you just can’t live without… I’m terrible at that.”

I have already pointed out that Melanie is a prolific writer. Proof of this is in the fact that she has just published the third book in one of her series’ and plans to have one from another available by the end of January:

“I just published the third book in my Thin Blue Line Series – Subterfuge. Where it fits; well, that is a little tricky. Technically, it is the third book in the series,but chronologically it is actually the first. If you haven’t ready any of my work, there is no problem picking this one up and giving it a try.

Young girls are disappearing in groups of three, their bodies callously discarded by a killer whose methods stun even the most seasoned detectives. Agent Skeeter Perkins is a world-renowned profiler. He’s been with the FBI for over a decade and has made a name for himself catching the worst serial killers known to man. His current case, a man the media has dubbed the “Scientist” is no different. But,when Perkins and his team start to close in, the stakes become personal. Skeet must put everything on the line as he plunges headlong into the most desperate hunt of his life.

https://www.books2read.com/Subterfuge

The third season of Paige Carter will be completed at the end of this month (December). I hope to have it available for purchase by the end of January. In the meantime, you can read the entire third season (9 episodes) on my website. If you’re new to Paige Carter, just subscribe to my blog and get the entire first season as my gift just for signing up. http://geni.us/Blogsignup

Paige Carter is a police procedural series. Each season contains 9 Episodes (or short stories) where Paige and her colleagues solve a local crime. It has been compared to Blue Bloods or Longmire.”

https://melaniepsmith.com/crime-blog/

Is there an aspect of the publishing business that she wishes someone had warned her about before she started?

“I wish I had known just how much work it would entail. One of the benefits of self-publishing is that you control everything. One of the challenges… you control everything. The big publishing houses have a small army to assist with every aspect of publishing. As Indie-Authors we must manage it all ourselves. We do our own accounting, IT management, marketing, production, formatting, editing, and sales… or we find professionals to do it for us. It’s a lot to jump into without a little help along the way. Instead of wearing one hat in the process, we have to wear them all. This requires patience and an ability to know our strengths and weaknesses. No matter how amazing your first book, there is very little chance you will hit that publish button and become rich overnight. Our work must be professional and high-quality. Readers want to focus on content and the story, not get distracted by poor layout, sloppy grammar, and punctuation or spelling errors. Our work defines who we are as authors and generates our business reputation. Because of this, our novels must be as close to perfect as possible before we hit that publish button. Nobody can do this alone – we all need professionals to assist us.”

Talking of surprises, I wondered if she was prepared to reveal something about herself that might surprise her readers?

“I’ve always been adventurous but if my readers have visited my website, they already know this from my about page. They might be surprised to know I can operate a backhoe and I know how to drive an M113 tank.”

https://melaniepsmith.com/about-the-author/

I certainly enjoyed my conversation with Melanie P. Smith. I hope you did too. You might care to follow her on Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, YouTube, Twitter and Amazon.