One of Melanie's first jobs was working at the movie theatre near her local community college. She loved to usher and would sneak into movies under the auspices of doing theatre checks so she could quietly stand in the back and watch. She wrote a lot of bad poetry between showings.

During grad school, she worked weekend mornings as a receptionist at a real estate office within walking distance of her studio apartment. In the afternoon, she'd go to her second job at the Apple Store downtown. 

She loves reading about folklore and the occult—and the idea that what we can see and touch brushes up against the edges of something bigger than ourselves and largely unknowable.

She watches more horror movies and thrillers than almost any other genre. 

She loves old buildings and vast gardens and being in places that feel ancient and otheworldly.

She loves being in any body of water, but no matter how old she gets, she can't shake the feeling that something lurks in the depths below.

She's a dog person and an animal lover—the kind of person who lets accidentally stepping on a snail haunt her.

Music was her first love. Song lyrics taught her the power of words and brought her to books. Now she prefers music stripped of words, just an artist and an instrument and her own mind left to fill in the gaps.

Melanie was diagnosed with severe Scoliosis in high school. She has two rods screwed into her spine, keeping her back straight. She spent most of the summer after her freshman year in bed recovering from surgery and reading every V.C. Andrews book in existence.

She is obsessed with just about every one of Hayao Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli films. If you're curious about other movies and TV shows Melanie loves, you can visit her official Manuscript Wishlist page.