Friday - Who She Was Before - Mari Manning #MFRWauthor

1. What were you in your life before you became a writer? Did this influence your writing?

I've been lots of things that were writing-related. I've been a staff writer and editor for a news magazine, I've written dozens of newsletters for various industries, I've been manager for a national accounting firm. Currently I'm director of marketing for a local accounting firm.

2 Are you genre specific or general? Why? I don't mean genres like romance, mystery, fantasy etc. There are many subgenres of the above.

I am not genre-specific, but my tendency when I write romance is to go with suspense or mystery. Romance needs tension beyond the will-they-or-won't-they question, and character arcs are hard for me. So I go with some kind of mystery, although in the book I'm planning now, I'm trying to avoid mystery and use character arc to move the story forward. 

3. Did your reading choices have anything to do with your choice of a genre or genres?

No. I don't read romance when I am writing it, because I don't want to be influenced by others work. That said, I have a subscription to Audible so I will listen to it at times when I am driving and working out just to see what people are up to. I am not an auditory learner so I don't retain much of the stories once I finish them. I am actually a very eclectic reader. If you want to follow what I read, find me on Goodreads. I list all the books I've read or listened to, plus I do at least a short review of each.

4. What's your latest release?

My latest release is the first in my Murder in Texas series, Stranger at My Door, which came out in January. The second book, Stranger in My House, will be released on June 13. I am still waiting to see if Entangled will take the third, Stranger in My Bed. Hopefully they will.

5. What are you working on now?

I have just finished two mainstream mysteries, and I am working on the first in a series of romances for Entangled's Bliss line, which is sweet, small town romance.

6. Where can we find you?

I am at www.marimanning.com. Check out my Facebook page or follow me on twitter @mari_manning