Gravity Blog Tour: Interview With Melissa West

As part of her blog tour for Gravity, we interviewed the author Melissa West!

What made you think of such a unique idea for the story in Gravity?:

I’ve always been fascinated by aliens. Of all the paranormal creatures out there, aliens are the only one that many scientists truly believe exists. I think that adds a lot to the story. As for the plot, I think my story is a pretty true depiction of how we, as humans, would handle an alien race trying to come to Earth. We are not necessarily known for our open-mindedness.

Are the characters influenced by anyone you know in real life?

Yes, though they may kill me if I told. :) Oddly enough, Jackson is a lot like my husband was in college. He also has blond hair, blue eyes, and golden skin. He has a very easy style and never gets rattled. Those elements of Jackson were all pulled from my husband.

What was the most difficult challenge in writing this novel?

Getting the alien theory down so it felt logical was tricky. We, as readers, are willing to dive into fiction and accept the unknown, but when you throw in something like aliens, there has to be enough foundation there to support the story. What made it even harder was that book 2 focuses a lot on the Ancients, so I didn’t want to ruin that story by giving it all away in GRAVITY. I had to walk a fine line.

What book have you read lately that you absolutely loved?

That’s a hard question because as a writer I like lots of books, but love very few. But I am reading THE DIVINERS by Libba Bray right now and so far I love it. Then again, I’m a huge Libba Bray fan. :)

Are there any hints you can give us about what may be coming for Ari and Jackson in the next novel?

It’s tricky to give hints without giving away the end of GRAVITY, but I will tell you book 2 is intense, both in what they face and how they handle their relationship. Ari is too smart to go openly into the unknown. She wants Jackson to work for her trust, so it’s been fun watching the relationship unfold and change in book 2. I will say they are older in book 2, and consequently, there is a lot of…chemistry. I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. :)

If Gravity was made into a movie who would you want to play Ari and Jackson?

I like Megan Fox for Ari, if you give her a gun and tone down the sex appeal. Ari is too tough to care about being sexy. And Taylor Kitsch for Jackson. 

Thanks for joining us today Melissa! You can learn more about Melissa West and her books on her website http://www.melissawestauthor.com/Home_Page.php. Her book is currently for sale in Nook and Kindle format on Barnes and Noble and Amazon! Check out the site tomorrow for a review of her debut novel Gravity!