Sizzling Pages is so excited to have the opportunity to chat with
M. Pierce about the release of Night Owl
At twenty-eight, Matt Sky has the perfect life. He has a beautiful
girlfriend, a massive inheritance, and four national bestsellers -- all
penned under his airtight alias, M. Pierce.
At twenty-seven, Hannah Catalano was a train wreck. Her boyfriend is a deadbeat and her job is abysmal.
Matt and Hannah meet online as writing partners. Their relationship is safe, anonymous, and innocent...
Until
Matt sees a picture of Hannah. Hannah's picture sparks an attraction
Matt is powerless to ignore. When circumstance brings Matt and Hannah
together, the strangers begin a love story that's passionate, poignant,
unforgettable, and unstoppable.
I love that this story just jumped right into the good bits. We got the
brief background of how they know each other and then bam the action
started.
~Carmen~
I was invested in this book from the beginning.
The internal war with
my morals wanted me to hate it, but the story was so well written
that I
just went with it and trusted the author to take me to the happy place
(and you did several times **wink wink**)
~Tara~
I can't even begin to count the ways that I love this book.
Or the
positions that I used in combating my ever growing hornyness that this
book evoked.
~Dawn~
I didn't want it to end, it's so cleverly written to include mystery and intrigue surrounding
the author (and the bunny!), that I'm truly blown away.
~Cariad~
The intensity of this story lured me in like the proverbial fish on a hook.
~Ang~
SPRR: How long did it take you to write the book? From thinking it to publishing it.It took me about two months to write Night Owl. From thinking to publishing? A bit longer.
The germination period of a novel might be a lifetime – who knows? Editing took me a month at least.
I combed over that manuscript again and again (and I still find typos, which is infuriating).
Then I had to format the book into a Kindle book, make cover art, figure out the KDP program, etc.
So… realistically speaking, the book's creation took closer to four months.
SPRR: How much is your real life persona in Night Owl?Good question. I'd say about… 80%. Ha. How's that for mathematical precision. I would answer differently if you asked how much of my "real life" is in Night Owl – but my persona? Yes, a lot of that. Matt and Hannah (for the most part) came from my mind. It's only natural that my feelings, character, and attitude would influence them. I understand both of them. I'm like both of them, and different from both of them – but more alike than different.
SPRR: Do you feel as author M. Pierce the need for anonymity is just as great as the character M. Pierce?Yes.
SPRR: An autobiography of your sex life or the sex life you wish had?Oh wow. Haha. Pass.
SPRR: Any regrets?So many regrets. I'd list a few, but I don't like to dwell on them. Let's just say that from the ages of 19 – 23 I made a host of terrible decisions, and my life has never been the same since. I lost friends, gained enemies, nearly died, and put my friends and family through hell – all because of my selfish choices and very bad behavior. Hm… you live and learn…
SPRR: Have you written any other books possibly under other Pseudo's (or real name) different genre maybe and this book is something so outside the norm for you, you had to go by someone else?
No, I haven't published any other novels. I've published a few small things under my real name. Because of the nature of Night Owl, a pen name seemed logical.
SPRR: Based on response above was this story something of an alter ego maybe - still some of you but enhanced in someway?I think I could call any character an alter ego, so sure, yes. Enhanced in some way? I don't know about that. I enjoy who I am.
SPRR: What would you like your fans/reading audience to get from this story?
(some writers just want a shock factor, others want to paint us a series of events that lead us somewhere and others want to tell a tale that's as close to reality as possible.)
Well, I am definitely not trying to tell a tale that's close to reality. Erotica is a fantasy driven genre. The characters are too perfect in many ways, the situations are ideal. And I'm not trying to shock anyone, though I think I shocked a few. You know… I mostly want people to get escape. I want people to sit down with my book and enjoy reading it, to be entertained, and to forget their worries for a while. People have a right to read escapist literature. People have a right to read fun, silly, sexy stories, and maybe forget their day-to-day obligations for a while. Have I written the next Great American Novel? No. I didn't set out to do that. I want to entertain people, and I want to make them feel something.
SPRR: For us this book seemed to have a flawless two different first - person POV. Was it hard to switch back and forth? Which POV was the more difficult one to get inside of their head.Switching between the POVs was difficult, yes. They both proved challenging. Because Matt was psychologically volatile, I often had more trouble writing his chapters. He was usually alone (not interacting with other characters) and so he was more cerebral. Hannah was usually with others (family, etc.) and I found those scenes easier to write.
SPRR: What was the root or cause of Matt’s distrust? He mentions that there is no one he trusts implicitly - not even Hannah or his own brothers. Was it more than his parents death? Did this mistrust exist before his parents passing? Will this be explored in the next installments?Yes, distrust will be a theme in book 2. I think you could trace Matt's distrust back to his parents' death, yeah. He relied on their presence with a child's guilelessness. Their passing was a "betrayal" to him, a betrayal of his trust and expectations. I imagine he never wanted to need anyone after that event. He wanted to be self-reliant, and trusting no one is a part of that. Of course, when he became a very private and neurotic bestselling author, his trust issues only got worse.
SPRR: Why was Matt Sky so adamant about keeping his pen name anonymous? It is understandable that at first, Matt wanted Hannah to see him as a regular guy, not the world famous author M. Pierce.
But why was it so important to hide his identity for so long?Matt didn't want the public's attention; he didn't want to be seen (by Hannah or anyone) as an author. I think he would say that being "a regular guy" and being treated like that allowed him to write more honestly, more realistically. We put celebrity authors on strange pedestals. At the end of the day, they are no different than we are – except that they write. Hiding his identity allowed him to have a more mainstream identity. In turn, having a mainstream identity allowed him to write from the perspective of "a regular guy." And that's important to him.
SPRR: Hannah seemed to forget all the lies and deceit at the end to save Matt. Will we see these emotions finally surface in book 2?Yes, to some extent.
SPRR: What was in Matt's head when he was writing this line from The Surrogate? What did he feel the truth was as so much was based on lies? Love?"He loved her through every face of love. To her, the faces must have seemed like facades, but one continuous truth joined them."
Love, yes. Very good. Though the surrogate was deceiving the woman he loved, coming to her as someone different time and again, he loved her – that was the "continuous truth." Matt lied to Hannah many times, but he loved her – and love underpinned all the deception. So, what was in Matt's head when he wrote that line? His relationship with Hannah. I think he wrote The Surrogate to explain what he'd done, to rationalize it for himself (and for her), and to exorcise the demons of guilt.
SPRR: Is Matthew Sky truly dead or is it just his "persona" that "died"? Did his need for anonymity cause him to "kill off" his old life to start over?You'll see. (I'm kind of smiling as I answer this.)
SPRR: Does the letter "W" have a significant meaning? "W" an up-side-down "M". M.Pierce's world was turned "upside" and crashed. is this Matt starting over? or is the "W" Hannah?Haha. You're really asking for book 2 spoilers! Again, I have to say: you'll see. (And you're quite right about the W being an inverted M.)
SPRR: So much seemed to happen in book 1. Can you tell us what we have to look forward to in book 2?I can tell you this: Book 2 continues the story of Matt and Hannah, they will be the narrators (as they were in Night Owl), and the whole trilogy will have a happily ever after.
Great, great questions -- very thoughtful and perceptive.
Believe it or not, your questions helped me with some of the writing I'm doing in book 2,
so thank you! I truly enjoyed answering these.
We are so grateful to you for taking the time to answer our questions. We loved Night Owl and wish you continued success in all of your adventures. SPRR
