Saturday Shifters-Melissa Snark

Tell me about yourself.  How long have you been writing?

My name is Melissa Snark, which is actually a pen name, chosen to provide my poor family with a degree of privacy. For a kid, it is tough enough not wanting to be seen with your uncool mom. In real life, I'm mouthy and sarcastic. Throw in the fact that I write erotica and chronicle the adventures of the Snark family on my blog, and I'm nightmare mom.

My family is hysterical—three kids, four if you count Mr. Snark, and three cats. We're somewhere on the spectrum between Family Circus and Married With Children. Something is always going on. For instance, during my shower this morning my two-year-old daughter used her unsupervised break as an opportunity to unwind an entire roll of toilet paper. Then, as if that wasn't enough, she shredded some of it. It was everywhere—kitchen, office, on the stairs. You'd think she was a cat.

Anyway, back to writing. I've been writing since I was a kid. I think my first attempts at fiction were in my early teens. For the most part, my efforts have been in the fantasy genre, but I've strayed into romantic suspense also. Professionally, I have seven years of experience as a technical writer preparing device specifications, software manuals and other documentation. I'd periodically come back into fiction, especially during the years when I was a SAHM
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Where did the inspiration for this story come from?

I conceived the original concept for Hunger Moon during a ski trip to Lake Tahoe during February. The winter mountains are so desolate and beautiful. I thought it would be the perfect backdrop for a werewolf tale. Up until that point, I'd been playing with the idea of writing a supernatural fantasy novel, but I wanted to stay away from vampires because there are already so many vamp stories. Wolves have always appealed to me. Once I conceived the idea for linking werewolf origins to Norse mythology, I developed my own origin story for shifter wolves descended from the mythological wolf, Fenris.

Who is your favorite shifter character from TV or the movies?

That's a hard one since there really aren't all that many shifter shows, and I don't watch the few that are out there. I had to really think about this one and I'd have to say that Oz, a werewolf from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, is the coolest shifter guy of all time. Seth Green just has the best smirk and beautiful eyes. Also, Joss Whedon gave him really fantastic lines to work with.

What is your writing space like?

I share an open office area with my husband who is simply the biggest slob. Thankfully, he has his own desk so the mess is somewhat contained. My desk is actually just a black metal table, and I have to share my computer with my two-year-old who is fond of watching Dora the Explorer on one of my paired monitors. The child is slightly neater than my husband, but not much.

I dream about someday having my own office. With a solid door.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers? 

Sure thing. I'd love to share my upcoming urban fantasy novel, Hunger Moon.  The first chapter is posted for free download on my website [http://www.melissasnark.com/hunger-moon-free-first-chapter/]. My release date will probably be sometime in April 2013.

Blurb:

Hunger Moon is an intense urban fantasy that follows the story of Valkyrie Victoria Storm as she evades hunters and battles a Norse winter witch intent upon enslaving her people. Victoria desires nothing more than to provide her wolf pack with a safe haven, but her position as priestess to the Goddess Freya also brings with it certain… obligations. Not to mention complications.

War with the Barrett family resulted in the deaths of her parents and most of her pack. Now, hunters are hot on the trail of the remaining pack members. Sawyer Barrett, a human hunter hell bent on revenge, is convinced that Victoria murdered his brother. He will stop at nothing to see her dead.

Victoria must defend the survivors and somehow lead them to safety. Months on the run has weakened the pack, and there are newborn pups to protect, making swift travel impossible. Ahead, the promise of refuge beckons.

Their best chance for survival lies in Sierra Pines, California: Arik Koenig, a powerful, dominant male wolf. He promises to protect and provide for the pack, something Victoria knows the pack needs for survival. His mysterious past is riddled with violence and death, including the slaughter of his entire family twenty years before. His wife died under mysterious circumstances and his son, Logan, is rumored to be her killer.

What is truth? Who can she trust? The desperate spirit of Arik’s murdered wife calls out for help, and Logan begs for assistance in clearing his name. Victoria must solve a murder that has pitted father against son, rooted in a mystery reaching back two decades. Her quest starts her on a journey from the human world to Odin’s Valhalla and back again.

Victoria will find salvation or face destruction beneath the Hunger Moon…