Granger's Guide to the Paranormal and Marketing: May Author Spotlight

  There are a lot of authors in the self-publishing world, especially in the romance and paranormal genres. Madison Granger is one such author that's made a name for herself in my author tribe and the tribes of others.

  Granger is a paranormal romance and urban fantasy author for adults. She lives south of New Orleans, Louisiana, and the city has influenced some of her writings, such as her Amelia series.

  "I write paranormal romance and urban fantasy, so far," stated Granger. "I have plans to write a children's book in the near future. I write for adults because at my age it's hard to remember how I thought when I was a teen or a young adult."

  Granger told me that she can't recall how long she'd wanted to be an author before becoming one, but that it was a friend of hers that ultimately nudged her into the publishing world. 

  "I told a friend, who turned out to be a publisher, about a recurring dream," explained Granger. "She told me it sounded more like a story and I should write it down. Every one of my stories comes from dreams. I'll wake up in the wee hours with a name, a scene, something to work with. I have a note app on my phone so I jot it down and the rest is history."

 

 In 2016, Granger published Phoenix Rising, her debut novel and the first installment of her Kindred series. She has participated in anthologies, written standalones, and has crafted series, but her all-time favorite book that she's written is Gambit.

  "I put a little of everything into this one [Gambit]," remarked Granger. "In addition to my shifters, there's magic, a whole lot of betrayal, suspense, and mystery. I'm big into fated mates, and this one does not fail. Skylar and Jace have a magnetism that's through the roof and you can't help but love them."

  "Skylar Mason, from Gambit, is my favorite character," Granger continued. "She's the strongest female character I've written to date. She doesn't back down from any situation and exemplifies everything I think a woman should strive to be."

  I have not read Gambit, but it is on my to-be-read list and currently has a five star rating.

     I must say that I'm thoroughly addicted to Granger's Amelia series. I have a few books of Granger's, but the Amelia series caught my attention immediately. It's an urban fantasy about a hospice nurse who finds herself falling for an ancient vampire. My official reviews of both the first and second books in this series are up on Goodreads (Amazon, I'm coming for you. I ain't quitting until you give me back my review privileges). 

  I gave both The Awakening of Amelia and The Rising of Amelia five star reviews. The Awakening of Amelia took me by surprise. I didn’t read the description of this book before I picked it up. I’d only heard good things about it and thought I’d give it a read. When I say I was blown away, that’s not an understatement.

  Amelia is a hospice nurse that gets a job caring for an elderly woman whose family has a secret that they try not to even think about. The woman is known to be a little abrasive but Amelia becomes fast friends with her and listens diligently to her stories of a mysterious man who she'd fallen in love with as a younger woman.

  When the man, who the woman's family doesn't believe exists, suddenly appears in Amelia's life, the nurse discovers just why her patient was so entranced by him.

   This story took a twist I didn’t see coming and had me feeling like I was Amelia herself. The author has a way with words, which I know is kind of a cliche thing to say, but it’s true. If you don’t pick up this book, you’re missing out. It’s a paranormal romance that focuses on love versus obligation and briefly touches on mental health. There is an assault trigger warning for this story, but it's brief. 

  The Rising of Amelia is a sequel to The Awakening of Amelia and I preordered it the moment I saw it available. Then Granger was gracious enough to give me a digital advanced reader's copy to read. The Rising of Amelia is the perfect vampire romance for adults. Amelia gets what she wanted when Demetrius agrees to turn her, but being a vampire isn’t all fun and games. In this book, Granger explored vampirism and how both the human and monster sides come into play for those affected. 

   I don’t know if a third book is being planned, but this one started setting up a vampire hierarchy that I would like to learn more about. I could see this world becoming a massive fandom for vampire fans. Specifically, adults who grew up reading vampire fiction and are looking for something more advanced than young adult literature. 

  Granger does a perfect job keeping the tone of a vampire story and enriching it with adult subjects.

  I would recommend the Amelia series to all paranormal, preternatural, and supernatural literature lovers.

  Speaking of preorders, setting up preorders is one way that self-published authors market their books. By getting preorders and having a bunch of copies of a book delivered to readers the day it releases, authors can increase their rankings on and have their book featured on lists. 

  According to Granger, "Marketing is a necessary evil. I have to do it, but I don't care for it."

  I haven't met an author yet who truly and deeply enjoys the marketing side of this business. I believe it's because we're all creators, worrying about the revenue side of things doesn't come naturally to us. We would rather spend our time working on our next book than promoting the ones we've already put out there, but if you don't market you'll end up with a shallow reading pool. 

  It's because of marketing that authors are introduced to new readers and Granger said, "Meeting readers and other authors have been my favorite part of my author journey, whether it's at signings or online. They've enriched my life."

    To all those out there nervous about picking up a pen or trying to navigate the world of book writing, Granger says, " Begining Writers: Never think you can't, that's fatalistic. Pick up the pen and write something. Write every day, even if it's a couple of sentences. That builds into a habit, setting your foundation. The story will come when it's ready. Authors: I stand strongly on this one...get a good editor. It's crucial to your book. You and your friends may find typos but you'll miss plot holes, storyline gaps, and a million other things that could've made your good story into a great one."

  Currently, Granger is working on Zane, book one of her new Bayou Crescent Wolves trilogy. Just by the title, I know I'm going to have to preorder this book as well. Madison Granger is a paranormal writer for us adults that never grew out of our shifter and vampire phases. Give her a chance and she won't disappoint.