Author Interview with Wendy Saunders

Hi Wendy! Can you tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is called Crossroads, it’s the third book of the Mercy series I can’t really say too much without giving away the plot.

What inspired you to write it?
My inspiration for the whole Mercy series came from my love of magic, witchcraft and mythology. I’ve found that by setting my stories in the Supernatural genre it gives you such a lot of different ideas to play with.

How did you come up with the idea for the cover?
I knew I wasn’t going to be any good at designing a cover and I didn’t really have a clue what I wanted, so I used 99designs.com and that’s how I met my designer Tim, he owns and runs Novel Design Studio. I gave him the basic premise of the story and some of the character’s backgrounds and the second I saw his design I knew it was perfect and that it would work as a continuing theme for the rest of the books in the series. I now go to him for all my design work.

If it was made into a movie, who would you like to play the main characters?
I guess I see it as more of a TV series than a movie, a bit like True Blood, but if I had to choose some of the main characters I would have Genevieve Padalecki as Olivia and her husband Jared as Theo, Julie Walters would be Fiona, Jake would be played by Theo James and Ash would be Ian Somerhalder.

Is it part of a series or is it a stand-alone novel?
Mercy is the first book of a series, it’s a bit of a labor of love as it will be a very long running series. The first series which begins with Mercy will have five books which includes, Bk1 Mercy, Bk2 The Ferryman, Bk 3 Crossroads, Bk 4 Witchfinder and Bk 5 Infernum. The First series deals with an ancient and powerful book which contains all the magic and secrets of Hell. I’m intending there to be five series in total each made up of five books and each series dealing with another book. So Series 2 will be The Book of the Heavens, Series 3 The Book of Purgatory etc…so overall there will probably be 25 books, I must be mad…

Where is the novel set and why did you choose to set it there?
Pretty much the whole story is set in and around a fictional town I created called Mercy which is located close to Salem in Massachusetts. I chose to set it there because I have always loved the East Coast and particularly the New England/Massachusetts area. There’s so much history and magic associated with this area as it is where the original 13 colonies where.

What is it about this genre that appeals to you so much?
I’ve always loved magic; it’s like having a whole smorgasbord of treats to dip into. It gives you such a lot of scope to let your imagination run wild and lots of fresh ideas, especially if you are working on a long running series.

What made you want to become an author?
I’ve always lived inside my head, even as a child I was always labelled a dreamer. It certainly sharpened my imagination and when I finally put pen to paper as a seventeen-year-old I realised I was a writer; it wasn’t so much a conscious choice I think so much as a realisation. It was one of those comfortable moments when you sit back and think, ah yes this was what I was meant to be doing. Of course I still had a long way to go to gain the life experience and skills necessary to write a decent story, some of my earlier stuff was just cringe worthy.

How do you come up with character names?
Sometimes the names are just there in my head, sometimes I have to go looking for them. I keep a handy supply of baby name books on my bookshelf and the internet has been invaluable when I want to find more obscure names, such as Celtic or Ancient Greek names.

Do you struggle to come up with book titles? Do they come before, during or after you've written your book?
So far the book names have come before I’ve written the books, but that may or may not change as I go along.

Name one of your all-time favourite books?
Alice in Wonderland.

Who, or what, inspires you?
Lots of different things, sometimes it can be as simple as a single name, or a place or an idea that inspires me. I draw a lot of inspiration from folk tales and mythology as well. For example, I love the Three Fates from Greek Mythology I’d love to write a story about them set in the present day. I have a huge notebook which I scribble down all the things that inspire me.

Where is your favourite place to write?
My Nana’s room. My grandmother lived with me and my husband and children for eight years, I took care of her but when she passed away last year I made her room into my writer’s cave. It’s nice, it feels like she’s sitting in here with me most of the time.

What is your favourite movie that was based on a book?
Ooh that’s a tough one, there have been a lot of great movies based on book adaptations but I think if I had to nail it down it would be Lord of the Rings, see? Magic again…

Name two of your favourite authors.
David Eddings and Nora Roberts.

Tell us a random fact about yourself.
I never finish a whole cup of tea, I only ever drink half, drives my husband nuts.

Who would play you in the movie about your life?
I have no idea, seriously…I’ve been pondering this question for a while and I’m still coming up with nothing. I guess I find it hard to picture anyone else being me, I’m just a regular person.

Tell us an interesting fact about where you live.
There really isn’t anything interesting about where I live, it’s probably one of the most boring towns in the known world perhaps that’s why I love magic and writing so much, it’s a way to escape mundane reality.

What are your (writing) plans for the future?
Oh I have lots of plans, apart from the Mercy series, I’ll be releasing a non-magical thriller later on this year called Tangled Web about a young woman who’s looking for her sister who disappeared the night her father died. I am also planning to release a standalone novel next year call The Cliff House, which deals with reincarnation, it’s a sticky love triangle that spans two lifetimes when everything ended in murder the first time around they have to make it right in the present day.

Tell us one thing that's on your bucket list.
Visiting Salem Massachusetts.

Favourite myth / fairytale?
I love the Little Mermaid, although the original version and not the Disney one is pretty harsh.

Who/What did you want to be when you were a kid?
I went through all the usual stuff, I remember wanting to be a nurse, then an astronaut, I even wanted to join the Navy at one point but I don’t have the discipline for it and I hate being told what to do. I’m lucky that I realised early on that I wanted to be a writer.

Wendy Saunders is the author of The Guardian series, which includes Book 1 Mercy, Book 2 The Ferryman and Book 3 Crossroads with book 4, Witchfinder and Book 5 Infernum to be released later this year. For more information please visit Wendy's website and her Facebook page.
Wendy has a deep abiding love of all things supernatural as well as ancient history, folktales, urban myths and lore, but at heart she's a romantic, she does love an epic love story! She also loves writing stories with big plot twists and OMG! moments and has a deep seated love of long running series although she will be writing some stand alone novels as well.
She lives in Hampshire, England with her husband and three children. Wendy is currently working on the continuation of the Guardians series but also she is also writing the first book of a new Trilogy called The Carter Legacy, the first book of which is Tangled Web and is a fast paced non magic thriller.

Get Crossroads on Amazon UK