Meet Samantha Combs…and her Muse (up close and personal)
Samantha Combs, fellow author at Musa Publishing and awesome creator of Paranormal YA novels, stretched the boundaries of author interviews recently by posting an interview with me…by my budgie. Now it’s Samantha’s turn! And her feisty Muse-with-an-Attitude, Musina, has kindly (I think) stepped in to give us an amazing window into her pet author’s creative journey.
Welcome, Samantha and Musina. The floor is yours:
Hi, Musina. When did you first meet Samantha, and did she recognize you straight away?
I first came into Sam’s life when she was ready for me. She had been writing since she was a small girl, but I never sensed the right time. If you get it wrong, you can totally harsh the gig. Like the human has creative overload and goes all postal on you. So I waited. One night, when she was having one of those conversations you can only have with a four-year-old, I introduced myself. She didn’t know who I was until long after that, but she knew something had changed. The writing became more than a hobby. It became a passion. She felt me compel her and we wrote her first published novel in 2 months of only writing at night and on weekends during nap time.
What is your favourite way to ‘appear’?
I like the “compelling” thing. I start as an urge, almost like the human need to go pee…insistent, increasing in strength and just not going away! She used to hate it, but she gets it now. Now, she likes it when I compel her to open the laptop, and then we settle in together. We have reached an easy alliance, her and I. She knows I am there, and she knows I will run with seed, if only I allow her to plant it. Most of the time, I try not to interrupt her regular life. Well, some of the time. What? I have a job to do. Whatever.
Which is your favourite book of Samantha’s?
I have a special place in my heart for two of them. The first is Ghostly. I think more than anyone I resemble the sidekick friend Sixx from that book. Without her knowing or really understanding, she wrote that character as me. Smart-assed with an awesome fashion sense. Yeah! I also love the one about to release, Waterdancer. I have always dropped bits of Sam’s life in our writing, but this time, she let a whole lot more in. When we re-read the final draft, we cried. We understood so much of Bailey, the main character, of her life. A lot of it is in that novel.
Can you tell us the sequence of Samantha’s novels and why you chose that order to inspire her with?
I must admit, I mess with her a bit on that score. She wrote Spellbound, then I interjected the idea of another two stories before we broached the idea of the sequel. Plus, those damn characters wouldn’t shut up! Waking Sam in the middle of the night and making her poke ideas into her smartphone is MY job, damn it. I couldn’t compete with their insistence, so I finally compelled her to write the damn sequel. And now the greedy twits want another one! *sigh* A muse’s job is NEVER done!
What do you do when Samantha is saying ‘I don’t wanna’? Do you have more than one approach?
She had a bad patch when she lost that silly job she had. It was harder to get in. One day I planted a seed more like the size of a watermelon and sort of smacked her stupid with it. I came to her as her Mum’s voice. Never fails now. Also, like in real estate, it’s all location, location, location. So I have a favorite. In the shower. Now, that’s my best place to jam ideas in…she’s alone there and rarely anywhere else. Or in her car while she’s driving. At least there she can take notes. Thank you, iphone and Siri! (A cousin of mine….distantly related. She’s okay, just a bit of a know-it-all. It’s annoying. Whatever.)
What do you like to do best in your spare time (if you get spare time)?
Untangle traffic jams, find lost wedding rings, but nothing directly related to another individual. For better or for worse, Sam and I are together for life. See, once you discover a Muse, she will forever after be your inspiration, and yours alone. It takes a while for you to find each other. I’ve had failures, sure. Vanilla Ice, the movie Ishtar, and Crocs. But, then, there was Sam. She’s a keeper. But, you know, I was like, assigned to her. I have to stay. It’s not like I love her or anything. She just….she gets me. It’s cool. Whatever.
Do you have any special advice to other Muses?
Keep trying to find your person. It’s really kicky when your seed becomes something that makes others laugh or cheer or cry. That’s when I know she is at her full creative potential. And I am fulfilling mine. What’s not to like? Winner, winner, chicken dinner, everybody gets a prize! It’s a rockin’ cool partnership, like….like peanut butter and bread. Most people say peanut butter and jelly, but without the bread, where do you spread it? Right? She’s my bread. Whatever.
Samantha, you’ve got your work cut out for you…and I somehow think Musina’s still got plenty of novels up her sleeve for you. Keep having fun, you two!
Take a look at Samantha’s novels :
And coming in September from Musa Publishing: WATERDANCER, a new YA paranormal.
CONNECT WITH SAMANTHA!
WRITE, PUBLISH, AND BE INFORMED!
