When she’s not writing or reading, you can find her spending time with her kids and indulging in a good cup of hot cocoa.
Rachel Moulden (RM): How did you get into writing and why did you choose the romance genre?
R.L. Mathewson (RLM): Writing was actually a last resort for me. I had been in a very bad marriage where I was desperate to find a way earn a living, find a carrier, anything that would help me to support my two young children and be able to get out us of that situation. I’d tried to teach myself anything from web design to stocks from books from the library. Every week I devoured several dozen books, teaching myself whatever I could about absolutely anything, but anything that I wanted to do would have cost money that I didn’t have to get started in. With absolutely no help or anyone to watch the children, my options were completely non-existent.
One day I reached the point where I realized that I had absolutely no options in life, no way to escape the situation, and no where to go. It was depressing to say the least. I gave up trying to teach myself anything, having completely run out of ideas, and started to lose myself in romance books. I needed happy endings, needed to believe that my life wasn’t the norm and that there was hope out there. My situation was bad, but I didn’t realize just had it was until a few years later.
I devoured every romance book that I could get my hands on. When I wasn’t taking care of my children or playing with them, I was reading. It was definitely an escape for me. There were some truly great books that helped me lose myself into their world, but then there were some truly horrible books that left me sitting there, wondering how in the hell they managed to publish a book. It gave me hope.
It was actually a really horrible book that had me getting up one afternoon, shaking my head and wondering, “Why not?’ and I sat down at the old desk I used and powered up my computer. That’s when I started writing Tristan and Marty’s story. Well, the first book I wrote for them before I read through it and realized just how horrible it was, lol. I ended up deleting that book, but I kept the characters because I liked them and because they gave me hope.
That is how I started writing romance.
RM: What was the inspiration for your latest novel Fire & Brimstone?
RLM: Lucifer’s story wasn’t planned. It was more of a whim when I was naming Danny’s brothers. I liked the idea of a brother with a seriously disturbing nickname and started playing with it. I also wanted to write about a character that had Celiacs (a condition that I have been diagnosed with) to help bring a little understanding to the condition and just how difficult living with food allergies could be and how dangerous. I really enjoyed writing his book, the humor, watching them torment each other and falling in love in the process.
RM: Is there a particular message you want readers to get out your books?
RLM: I want them to get the same experience that I get when I write the book, escape. I still read and write to escape the stress of the real world and lose myself in a story that can give me hope. I keep the drama out of my books, the stress and just focus on watching my characters fall in love and having a good time while doing it.
RM: What are you reading now?
RLM: I’m not reading anyone in particular right now, but I’m going through an addiction to historical novels, regency novels to be more specific. It’s a fun genre and one that I’d like to get back to in the future for my own writing.
RM: Do you have any new favorite authors at the moment?
RLM: Kresley Cole, Larissa Ione, G.A. Aiken, Julian Quinn to name a few.
RM: What tips would you want to give aspiring authors when writing the romance genre?
RLM: Don’t use the word moist in your books! Lol, readers hate that! I don’t do it, but I’ve heard enough about it over the years to know that is the fastest way to gross a reader out.
On a serious note, I would work hard to keep the characters consistent, show the readers a real reason why these two are falling in love, have them spend real time together instead of writing that they’ve only known each other for a few days and are madly in love without ever really being in the same room together. Basically, making it realistic, give them hope and don’t try to make your characters perfect.
RM: What is the most difficult part about writing in general?
RLM: Honestly? It would be the pressure, the bullies, etc. Writing should be fun, a way to relax, but sometimes you have to deal the negativity in the writing world just because there are people out there that believe it’s okay to take their bad day out on you and other authors. It’s depressing and heart wrenching to see authors being torn apart, because of these groups. I’ve seen several new authors torn apart, having their books completely destroyed before the book is even released.
Whenever you put yourself out there, you know that you have to deal with negativity, with possible bullying and in the process find a way to deal with it. It’s difficult and some days it’s hard as hell to stomach, but then it’s the great readers, the ones that go out of their way to tell you how much they enjoyed your books or how much they mean to them that help you get through it and get back to what you need to do.
RM: What do you think is the biggest misconception about the romance genre, and how do you think it can be fixed.
RLM: People automatically assume you are writing porn.
When my children attended a Catholic school, the principal took it upon herself to find out what I did and when she did, she then took it upon herself to tell everyone that I was writing porn basically. It made the situation horrible for me and the kids. They’ve since left that school, but it’s still a problem that I face.
When people ask what I do for a living, I either tell them that I work in publishing, run an online company or that I’m a drug dealer just so that I don’t have to deal with people make quick judgments.
RM: On your blog you mentioned that worked jobs as a bell hop and at a museum before becoming a stay at home mom. Did you have memorable or crazy experiences from those jobs?
RLM: I’ve worked as a receptionist, two days on a cranberry bog when I was a kid, in a factory, a short stint in the National Guard until my discs ruptured, in my college cafeteria, McDonalds for two horrible days that caused me to avoid their food for five years, in a museum, as a bellhop for Hawthorne Hotel in Salem, as campus student security, Walmart, in a hotel, in restaurants, as an EMT for nearly four years, and as a residential worker and every single one gave me experiences that either leave me shuddering or laughing.
My best experiences were probably as an EMT and as a bellhop. The jobs could be a lot of fun, but mostly they allowed me to meet great people from all walks of life. I learned a lot from the people I encountered and helped. They helped me grow up, figure things out for myself and decide the type of person that I wanted to be.
I tend to use my life experiences and the people that I interacted with in my books. I always changes the details and sometimes the names to protect people so that I can write my books without violating any confidences or embarrassing anyone.
RM: If you had to go back and do it all over, is there any aspect of your first written novel (A Humble Heart) that you would change?
I would have held off on publishing it until I was able to fully develop my writing style. Then again, the books ended up saving us when we needed them the most so perhaps not. Months after our lives were destroyed, the books managed to take off with the help of readers and authors so I can’t really say that I would have done anything different that would have affected that when the books, readers and bloggers literally saved our lives.
RM: What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?
RLM: Grammar. Definitely grammar. I learned a lot because of that. I received help from people over the years and learned from reading their notes and listening to their explanations about what I was doing wrong and how to fix it. I learned even more by reading books, paying attention and applying what I learned to my own work.
Honestly, that my books gave readers hope for a better future. I’ve received emails from several readers who read my books, knew of my situation and was able to decide that enough was enough and that it was time to save themselves from an abusive relationship. Those women managed to find the strength to stand on their own and make their own future. That is probably the best thing that has come from my writing for me. I appreciate the emails and messages readers send me, telling me how much they love my work, enjoyed it, laughed, etc. but knowing that I helped someone.
RM: What is the best and worst thing about being an independent author and self-publishing?
RLM: The worst thing: That you are completely on your own.
The best thing: That you are completely on your own.
As a self-published author I am completely responsible for everything that I write, responding to emails, messages, handling swag, and all the responsibilities that come with it. Sometimes it would be so easy just to give it all up to someone else so that I can just focus on writing, but that’s not an option right now.
I honestly don’t know if I could stomach being on someone else’s schedule, having to meet deadlines and having to conform my books to meet today’s trends. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t mind selling a series to a publishing house one day and having someone else take the reins for a bit and help reach new audiences. It would definitely be a feat for me, but for now I enjoy being in charge of my life and work.
I have two children that need me and require a great deal of my time not only for their therapy and appointments, but because I home school them now so that they can focus on what they need to do right now to ensure that their needs are met. Being on my own allows me to do that, to work when I can and be there for them. I’m not sure that I would be able to handle the stress of being on a firm schedule right now.
In the future, I really hope so. I hope things change in the future, but right now the fact that I am in charge of my work allows me to relax, somewhat.