Interview with Alexa Whitewolf, Author of Moonlight Rogues Boxset

by grant

in Author Interviews, Fantasy & Science Fiction, News

29 Dec 2020

What can you tell us about your new release, Moonlight Rogues Boxset?

My Moonlight Rogues Boxset is a paranormal romance suspense collection of four full-length novels and four origin stories, wrapped up in a cute package! Each full-length novel follows one alpha wolf as he finds his mate and fights demons from his past, with an overarching plot across the entire series. Readers who love feisty females and sexy (but not overbearing!) alphas will fall in love with Dominic, Tristan, Finn and Lucas. And there’s more! Because while each wolf has his own romance, they also come from various parts of the world  All that culminates in a story packed with folklore and myths from all over – some from my home country, Romania! And the best part is, this boxset is part of an entire universe now with dragon shifters, gods & goddesses and even -gasp- vampires!

What or who inspired you to become an author?

My love for writing started at a young age, when my grandma gave me my first ever duology of books, a Greek mythology collection. I was hooked on the gods and goddesses and the worlds the writer created. I didn’t know back then that I’d want to create my own worlds, that came later, when I ran out of things to devour as a reader. But I think that moment in my youth (I must’ve been around 6-7?) defined my appreciation for writing and authors in general, which led me eventually to my own journey of writing.

What’s on your top 5 list for the best books you’ve ever read?

Ouff, that’s a hard one!! I love too many, that’s the problem, and in all genres. But best of the best? I’ll go by “these books I’ll reread over and over to the end of time” as my rating mechanism  To that effect…
– The Knights of Emerald by Canadian author Anne Robillard. I read the original series in French when I lived in Montreal and it’s outstanding!
– Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers – a childhood favorite of mine
– Alexandra Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo – an every-year-growing-up favorite of mine
– James Rollins’ Altar of Eden – I got to be a Rollins fan late (as in, about 2 years ago?) but I’ve since devoured everything I’ve come across from him, and he never disappoints! I adore his mix of science and history.
– Sharon Bolton’s Now You See Me – a fantastic thriller, first in a series that has kept me captivated over and over again!

Say you’re the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

Diana Gabaldon. I loved her Outlander series and I’m a huge fan of the show, so I’d love to pick her brain for how she came up with the story, what hurtles she’s overcome in writing it, and how much fun it’s been visiting Scotland since.

What’s your favorite thing about writing?

Losing myself to my characters. Whenever I write, they get into my head and for those days or hours, I live and breathe their lives and their experiences. George R.R. Martin said “A reader lives a thousand lives before he does. The man who never reads only lives once.” For me, I’m living those thousand lives plus an extra hundred with my characters. The other bit I love is that with each book I write, I learning something new about myself. Some books have helped me get through rough patches in life, and others have been journeys of self-discovery! It’s never a dull moment.

What is a typical day like for you?

Waking up and kissing my husband good morning and prepping his coffee for work is always first. We make it a point to have those little moments every day! My day doesn’t really start until I’ve had enough caffeine in me, then I usually lounge on the couch or sit at my desk and do some writing. It’s always first on my list of the day, no matter what else is going on, otherwise I get cranky! I call it wrungry – as in I’m hungry for writing and that makes me cranky  (it’s ok, no one else gets it either except my dogs!). After the writing is done, it’s time for doggie walking to clear my head before some day job business. After a few hours of that I tend to get the itch to write again, so I’ll usually do some writing sprints throughout the day, or redirect the attention to marketing. I always spend late afternoon/evening to work on editing contracts for my LIAS clients, then it’s more doggie walking, spending time with my husband, and relaxing with a Netflix show or reading. More often than not these days, I try to squeeze in some writing just before bed, too. I’ve always been a night owl and whatever word count I don’t get to through the day, I’ll wrap up at nighttime. It’s a crazy pace, but I make it a point to leave weekends free of any “to do” lists.

What scene from Moonlight Rogues Boxset was your favorite to write?

All the fights between Dominic and Lucas! They’re two of the wolves who butt heads the most, and something about their camaraderie (they may want to kill each other, but they still have each other’s back!) always makes me laugh. I think a lot of that has to do with Lucas and his personality. I understand him the most, out of all the wolves. Which is why most readers hate him in books 1-3, then they get to his book (Last to Love) and everything starts making sense, including his butthead attitude. So yeah, their fights were my favorite bit to write!

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

About a year ago on Instagram, I was randomly scrolling (I had a lot of free time) and came upon this quote: “My goal is to build a life I don’t need a vacation from.” It rang so true to me, I printed it and have it on my office wall even now  I was raised with Carpe Diem as our family motto, but this was a version I felt and still feel much more connected with.