Tuesday 24 July 2012

On Spotlight: Meradeth Houston


Today I'm handing the reins over to Meradeth Houston, the author of Colors Like Memories. I'm currently reading her book, and really enjoying it. I will post the review as soon as I finish. All I can say is this story is fantastic and addictive. 

Before I leave, I'd like to introduce this lovely lady and wonderful writer to you.


 A bit about Meradeth Houston:

Meradeth’s never been a big fan of talking about herself, but if you really want to know, here are some random tidbits about her:
>She’s a Northern California girl. This generally means she talks too fast and use "like" a lot.
>When she’s not writing, she’s sequencing dead people’s DNA. For fun!
>She’s been writing since she was 11 years old. It's her hobby, her passion, and she’s so happy to get to share her work!
>If she could have a super-power, it would totally be flying. Which is a little strange, because she’s terrified of heights.

And now a guest post from Meradeth.

Writing as Catharsis

First off, thanks a million for hosting me, Cecilia! I’m so happy I stumbled across your awesome blog J. I was sitting at my computer attempting to find something fun to write about and I started thinking of why I started writing in the first place. There are two main things that got me putting pen to paper: it was fun, and it let me escape from the real world for a while. The same things keep me going now, and I’ve kind of become addicted to the release that writing gives me—that escape is a really wonderful thing!
Most readers know that feeling of being sucked into a book where the whole world just disappears and the written world becomes so real you can taste and touch it. It’s my absolute favorite thing about a good book: getting to live it with the characters. For writing, especially a first draft when the words are really flowing, it ten times better. Everything goes away and I’m there, watching my characters act, do what they need to, and sometimes completely surprise me. It’s incredible.
I kind of feel like I’m some kind of junky, describing my drug of choice J. I promise, it’s all harmless fun!
I’m certainly no expert in the subject, but this escape, and the ability to lose yourself in something fun, engaging, and totally new, is healthy. It’s so hard to find the time to do something like that as an adult (I mean, honestly, who has the time?), and even more difficult to find something that gives you that kind of release. It’s different for everyone (something I’m regularly reminded of by my family, who can’t understand why I like sitting in front of my computer even on my day’s off). Once you have something that makes you happy (when it’s not, well, drugs) it makes everything a little better. And it makes the time you devote to it completely worth it—we all need our mental health, right?
At the very least, that’s my thoughts on the subject! What do you do that makes you happy? That makes the world just a little brighter for you?

A bit about the Colors Like Memories:


Julia has a secret: she killed the guy she loved. It was an accident—sort of.
Julia is a Sary, the soul of a child who died before taking her first breath. Without this 'breath of life' she and others like her must help those on the verge of suicide. It's a job Julia used to enjoy, until the accident that claimed her boyfriend’s life—an accident she knows was her fault. If living with the guilt weren't enough, she's now assigned to help a girl dealing with the loss of her mother, something Julia's not exactly the best role model for. If she can't figure out a way to help her, Julia's going to lose her position in the Sary, something she swore to her boyfriend would never happen.

Available from MuseItUp Publishing.