Author Interview; Allison Michaels

I asked Allison Michaels last week, after I read her debut novel More Than Money if she would be generous enough to answer some of my questions. She provided the best answers ever, it's more than I could have hoped for to be honest. 

A link to my review is here 

 If you don't know who this talented woman is, let me introduce you: 

Allison Michaels enjoys combing heart, humor, and heat in her stories. When she isn't writing or attempting to put a dent in her daunting to-be-read list, she can be found watching a movie with her family or sharing a meal with her friends. Allison lives in a southwestern Chicago suburb with her husband and daughter. 

View her Website, Facebook, or Instagram 

But how much can you really get from an author bio? Not much. I wanted to know more, about the book, about Allison, I wanted it all. So here is my interview, which is way better than I could have ever imagined. Allison is amazing. 

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Where did the inspiration for More than Money come from?

There are two sources.

When I was in high school, an elderly woman who lived across the street from my family won the lottery. Less than a year later, a close friend’s father bought a lottery ticket at a gas station while filling up his tank. He went home and turned on the late-night news, which featured a live broadcast of the drawing. They won a million dollars. I watched as the good and bad side effects of wealth affected these people in numerous ways.

I was bored one night last summer and came upon a movie called It Could Happen to You on the onscreen cable guide. It’s about a cop who doesn’t have cash to tip his waitress at a diner. He shows her the lottery ticket he recently bought and promises to split the prize with her if he wins. He does, and he follows through on his promise. There’s a winner’s cruise in the movie, but these two characters literally miss the boat. Although there’s a brief glimpse of what does happen on there, I wondered how these two grounded and unjaded millionaires would have reacted to the floating three-ring circus.

After a week of brainstorming and loose outlining, I sat down and began typing on my laptop.

What would you do if you won a million dollars?

     Before I became a writer, I had a day job as an accountant. After taxes, roughly $600K would be left. I’d pay off my mortgage and any other debts first. A large contribution would be made to my daughter’s college fund. My family would make some upgrades to our house, such as new carpeting and windows, replacing several pieces of old furniture, and fresh paint throughout. Knowing how much we like to travel, a long trip to a bucket list destination would be in order. 

     I would make a sizeable donation to my town’s government, earmarking the funds to replace outdated and broken playground equipment in parks, plant more trees, replace missing and damaged street signs, and repair sidewalks in areas with heavy foot traffic. 

One of the most unique things about the town I live in is the foster care village located right outside city limits. It’s a small campus of both multi-unit buildings and single family homes. Professional foster parents care for siblings in order to keep those children together, thus slightly softening the impact of the loss of their parents. Public pleas are often made for toiletries, cleaning supplies, bed linens, clothing, toys, and non-perishable food items. I’d love nothing more than to go shopping for all of the things they need, fill up a truck, and drive over there to help ease the financial burden of the caregivers, which will enable them to focus more on the children.

More than Money is different than other romances. Was it a conscious decision, or was it just your own “voice” that sprung free when you began to write?

I knew before I typed the first paragraph that I wanted to challenge the so-called “formula” most romance novels follow. 

     I’m an avid reader who tears through three to five books per week. I don’t stick to one specific genre or sub-genre. I’ve seen foster care portrayed in a horrific fashion many times. Let me stress that there is NOTHING wrong with an author choosing to do this. It’s their story and their prerogative.

     I have several friends who are foster parents. They are kind, generous, and loving people who opened their hearts and homes to complete strangers without any hesitation. I’ve seen irrefutable living proof that not all foster parents are abusive and/or neglectful. Portraying foster care in a positive light in my way of honoring their selfless commitment. 

     Also, I chose to not go the route of the hero or heroine having sordid, difficult pasts that have turned them into troubled, pessimistic adults. While the heroine HAS experienced loss on more than one occasion, it doesn’t define her or weigh her down. She has tearful moments and still misses her loved ones, just as most people do, but isn’t crippled by grief. I think there are plenty of people who can relate to this mindset.

Are any of your characters a reflection of yourself?

     Absolutely!

     The issues and struggles Ryan deals with at work are similar to what I encountered when I crunched numbers for a living in a corporate setting. I can’t tell you how many times I wanted to bang my head against my desk when a spreadsheet didn’t balance out. And I can recall several instances when coworkers were jealous when someone else received a raise, bonus, promotion, or special recognition. 

     Collette’s spunk and generosity are personality traits I’d like to believe that I possess. I tend to be sarcastic and witty, and will go the extra distance to provide emotional and monetary support to the people who are important to me.

     Neil’s wry sense of humor and love of movies from the 80s and 90s are all ME. I can quote so many lines from flicks made in those decades that is isn’t even funny. And like Neil, I fall back on humor to try and cheer up myself and others.

What book do you wish you’d written? It can be a different version of your own book, a book you loved reading, or a well-known book. And why?

     I wish I’d written Flowers for Algernon. Daniel Keyes is a talented author who wrote a unique story that challenged the public’s perceptions of intelligence and stupidity. In it, a man named Charley with a low IQ agrees to participate in a medical experiment to make him smarter. With more intelligence comes more problems, and Charley wonders if maybe he was better off being a simpleton. The experiment is deemed a failure as Charley’s brain reverts to its previous state, and the book ends with him right back where he started. 

     This was the first book I read that didn’t have a HEA. I recall feeling heartbroken after reading the last sentence. His solitude upset me the most. If I could, I’d slightly alter the ending so that Charley would still be a simpleton, but not a loner.

Greed and jealousy are big parts of the storyline. Are they things you’ve had to experience first-hand?

     Yes. While I’ve never won the lottery, I have had instances both professionally and personally where the green-eyed monster reared up on its hind legs. In some cases, I wasn’t surprised. In others, I was completely caught off guard. Across the board, I felt hurt and sad after seeing the true colors of people I had considered to be friends and/or respected colleagues.  I did my best to shrug it off and move on with my chin up, but that’s often easier said than done.

There were a few surprises in More than Money. Were they plotted or did they come out in the writing process?

     There are three plot twists. Two of them were planned. One snuck up on me while I wrote. I’d love to elaborate, but I don’t want to divulge too much and spoil things for readers who haven’t gotten around to reading MTM yet, lol.

Focusing back on you, what made you sit down and tell this story?

     I’m pretty observant and love to people-watch. Referring back to the first question, I’ve seen people come into large sums of money or rise to positions of prominence. In almost every case, someone lashed out when their jealousy got the best of them. Lies were told, rumors were spread, and accusations were made. Money is a necessity. This is plain fact. We need it to put a roof over our heads, clothes on our backs, and food in our stomachs. I wanted to take two ordinary people and thrust them into a set of extraordinary circumstances after they experience windfalls, then show the upside and downside of their newfound wealth. And I also wanted to show the positive and negative effects their wealth has on the people around them. This story isn’t meant to come across as preachy, condescending, or patronizing in any way. If anything, I hope it makes at least one person take a step back and appreciate what they have instead of envying what someone else has.

It’s always fun when someone tells us something unexpected. Give us a random fact about yourself.

I *hate* wearing socks. This doesn’t mean that I walk around barefoot all the time or have nudist tendencies, lol. Shoes don’t bother me a bit. I prefer to wear ballet flats with no socks unless there’s snow on the ground. I’ve gotten many strange looks in stores, restaurants, etc. when people see the tops of my bare feet on cold days. Everyone has at least one quirk. This one is all mine.

What’s something you wish we’d asked in this interview?

     I wish you had asked for my MTM playlist. I’m biased, but I think it’s fantastic!

I also wish you'd asked me if there were any celebrities who I thought looked like my characters. I spent a ridiculous amount of time online hunting for pictures and gathered quite a few for Collette, Ryan, Neil, Les, and even Oscar, lol.

And that has to be the best author interview we've done to date. A huge thank you to Allison Michaels. Make sure y'all pick up her debut novel More Than Money. 

-Abri