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G. Miki Hayden

G. Miki Hayden recently sold four novels for serialization, but her first novel in print, Pacific Empire (an alternate history), won a rave in the NYTimes and was on that paper’s Summer Reading List. The sequel, New Pacific, was in print in 2004. Other novels of hers in print are By Reason of Insanity, Question Woman & Howling Sky (a post-apocalyptic novel set in the West), Strings (a middle-grade fantasy), and The Heroine’s Journey (a YA fantasy set in the Middle Ages and our own time). She has had many stories published, including in Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery Queen and in three Mystery Writers of America anthologies (winning an Edgar for one). She has also published in science fiction and romance genres. Miki has two writing instructionals in print—Writing the Mystery in its third edition and The Naked Writer, a style guide in its third edition. She has taught at Writer’s Digest University online for more than twenty years.

IN THE AUTHOR’S WORDS

Author interview

Interview submitted 9 August 2023.

What inspired you to start writing?

I needed to tell people things I knew about life that perhaps they hadn't yet thought of. I wanted to illuminate how we can look at what we all face. I'm still trying to do that. Over the years I've learned a lot and am coming closer to sharing thoughts of value.

Who are some of your favorite authors and books?

I'm reading a John LeCarre novel right now. He has good skills and plot surprises.

I'm rereading The Light in the Forest by Conrad Richter. He's a classic.

I just read The Crack in the Cosmic Egg--a metaphysical must-read--or any of his books that shed light on how the universe operates. Speaking of illumination.

What would you like to tell readers who have just discovered your books, but haven't read one yet?

I love them all, but do please read Rescued. Again, you're going to see the world differently when you find out how my characters rise against our common or uncommon experiences of life's adversities.

Who is the favorite character you created, and how did they come into being?

Jay Gardner in Rescued is a pure soul whom life has hit hard at an early age. But life has also brought him awesome gifts. He came into being as I learned how a pure heart/pure soul could rise above the worst that comes at him.

What are your future plans as a writer?

I want to continue to explore human difficulties and how human kindness can swoop in and help those who suffer. I'm working on such a novel now.