Indie Support Sunday: Allegra Hall

I’m not ashamed to admit that I first discovered Allegra Hall thanks to the GORGEOUS cover for her book A Wolf in the Garden. As a fan of romance in all of its forms (especially when werewolves are involved), I picked up the book and was absolutely blown away by the story. Ellie and Van will steal your heart, breath and ovaries (most likely). This book was rich in settings, paranormal lore and so much glorious writing. 

Thanks to this interview, I’ve also learned that Allegra got her start writing fiction on FanFiction.net (where I was once a regular poster of Supernatural fanfic!). Right now, Allegra has a series of monster romances—Unravelling Monsters Universe—the third of which just released and features a ghost and an orc! I promise when you pick up one of her books, you’re going to absolutely be treated to New Zealand settings and Māori culture.

All of Allegra’s books are currently available in Kindle Unlimited.

BEING AN AUTHOR

Who or what inspired you to write?

I was always writing stories in my head, I didn't know that I was supposed to write them down. I used to think that there was something wrong with me because of the amount of daydreaming that I used to do at school (particularly in maths class). When I was 18, a friend introduced me to Fanfiction.net, and I had the sudden realisation that I had an author brain. Here were other stories other people had written about the exact same characters that I had been daydreaming about.

As soon as I realised that, I began writing my own stories, and I never looked back. Writing is extremely cathartic for me.

What’s the best and worst part about being an indie author? 

The best part is being in control of every step of the process. Ironically, that’s also the worst part, because the wheels can fall off very quickly if you get behind on things, which has definitely happened to me this year due to external forces.

Why did you choose to self-publish instead of going the traditional route?

My jokey answer is always that trad would never publish my “Māori chick bangs a werewolf” story, But actually we're seeing trad beginning to move into the monster romance space now, they’re just a few years delayed when it comes to trends. 

The reality is that when I wrote A Wolf in the Garden I was a stay at home parent and was tossing up whether I was going to re-enter the workforce in my old career. I was hit with the idea for this book, and I just had a really strong gut feeling that this book would work, that this was the book that I’d been waiting for, and that these were the characters that I had been waiting to write. I made an agreement with my husband that I would take a year to write and publish A Wolf in the Garden and make some money from it, rather than go back to my own career. You can do that with indie publishing; there is an element of luck involved as well, in terms of getting your book in front of audiences, but from ideation to publication, you can get there within a single year. 

With trad, You have to query agents first, And you need to have a manuscript already written. The entire process is slower, and I didn’t have the option of waiting years—I wanted to generate an income so I could stay home with my kid until he turned 5 and went to school.

When you’re not writing, what do you do to get the creative juices flowing?

I love to go walking and listen to music at the same time. That will always help generate ideas. I haven't been able to do that for the last four months because of my pregnancy. I also get a lot of ideas while in the shower.

If you were to recommend books to me (in any genre), what would they be?

Run Run Rabbit by CM Nascosta

Prison Planet Barbarian by Ruby Dixon—I feel like people sleep on this one way too much. 

Taming Chaos by Anna Carven

The Man I Know by Daisy Jane

Well Bred by Adriana Anders

What are your top 5 4 tips or pieces of advice for aspiring authors?

1. If you’re a romance author, invest in some good craft and reference books. Romancing the Beat is the starting point, also The Emotions Thesaurus (and all the books in that series), plus, if you write spicy, some of the books like Naughty Words for Romance Author. 

2. Remember that other authors are your colleagues not your competition.

3. Don't get involved in drama. I'm not meaning that you shouldn't be an activist for things that you believe in, for example I’ve often shared posts about Gaza, as well as posts about Māori rights and how the current New Zealand government is set on erasing some of these rights. I'm meaning the kind of drama that isn't going to benefit you at all, and is just going to be a distraction from your writing time.

4. No one will read your book if they don't know about it. Indies typically don't have physical bookstores stocking them. Our “bookstores” are social media, and posts about our books by reader accounts is like having our book on the shelf in a bookstore. Don't underestimate the power of social media in terms of getting your name and your book out there.

ROMANCE AS A GENRE

Why did you choose romance as the genre to write in? What is your favorite thing about the genre?

I love romance, and nothing ever seems as interesting to me as the core romance plot. I don’t think I can handle reading anything without romance in it these days.

If not romance/subgenres of romance, what genre would you like to write in?

Something non-fiction, such as a deep dive into a history topic.

What are your most and least favorite tropes?

This is a tricky one. I really love friends to lovers. I don’t like bully romances. 

What are some tropes you want to write in the future?

Enemies to lovers.

What are some topics (sensitive and otherwise) that you think should exist more in romance?

I think there’s scope for people to write about a broader range of disabilities and other health conditions. Care obviously needs to be taken when writing outside of your own experiences, and people need to hire sensitivity readers. 

If you write open door romance, why did you choose that and what inspires your sex scenes?

I really believe in the power of open door romance to help readers, particularly women who are survivors of purity culture, to overcome some of the hang ups in their own heads about pleasure in their own bodies. Every time an author writes a masturbation scene with an FMC, you can guarantee that there is a reader out there who’s initial mindset around that kind of thing is being challenged. They're being given permission by these characters and by these books to ignore the things that they've been wrongly taught, and to go and find pleasure with themselves. 

Plus, I just really enjoy reading smut, and I find it really easy to write smut as well. 

YOUR BOOKS

What inspired your published stories? How and when did you come up with these stories and plots?

My stories always start with the characters and go from there quite naturally. Van and Ellie popped into my head unannounced after listening to an acoustic version of Tina Turner’s “The Best”.

Can you briefly tell me about your book(s)?

I write monster and paranormal romances set in the Unravelling Monsters Universe, where the idea that monsters exist is still very new to all the humans in the books. 

Do you already have a favorite character from the stories you’ve written?

That’s really tricky. I want to say West Livingston, which may shock readers! He’s a complicated character, and I love delving into the different layers of him.

If you were to cast your book for a movie/television show, who would you cast in the lead roles?

For Ellie, it would be Makayla (she’s a Māori singer). I think Van is too difficult to cast/I don’t know enough celebrities, but I don’t think many would reach his height. 

How much of yourself do you put into these characters?

Each character has a bit of me, I suppose? Ellie has the most in terms of her experiences being Māori and the long-lasting impact of colonisation on her family members and herself.

What is a story/stories that you really want to tell?

Omegaverses, and also Seth’s story in Unravelling Monsters.

Is there one common element that readers can find in all your stories?

A lot of Kiwi characters is the norm, rather than the exception. 

What’s next on the bookshelf for you? Anything you can tell us about a future project?

I’m going to slightly expand on the Van and Ellie novella I wrote for Renegade Romance. 

When you write these stories, what are you hoping your readers will feel?

All the emotions, but if I cry that helps to let me know my readers will probably cry in that scene too.

AUTHOR’S CHOICE

• Paperbacks, hardbacks, ebooks or audiobooks 

• Contemporary, fantasy, historical or romantic suspense 

• Single or Dual POV—or multi for why choose

• Standalones, series or standalones in a series—I can handle a duet, but nothing more than that.

• Open door, ajar door or closed door romances 

• Music or silence when writing—but must have a playlist for thinking about scenes

• Plotter, pantser or plantser 

• Water, tea, coffee or….wine?—and wine when I’m not pregnant

• Cold or warm weather 

• Write better in the morning, afternoon or night? 

• Illustrated or photo cover?—though it depends on the genre. 

Allegra can be found on Instagram. Join her Patreon for lots of exclusive goodies! And sign up for her newsletter to stay updated on her upcoming book.