Jadie sent me some interview questions, which I'll answer on my blog. At the bottom, I'm supposed to tag 3 other writers who will, in turn, answer some questions on their blogs next week. Jadie posted her answers to the questions last week. If you like, you can leave a comment on her blog and tell her that you connected to her through me.
Here are my answers to the questions I chose from the list:
What are you working on right now?
Most of you know that I have writing ADD and tend to have several projects going at once. I think I've reached a new record even for me. Here's the current list of stories in various stages. There are others, but these are the ones that still talk to me.
Demon Rising--A novella to connect The Magic Wakes with Battle for Sendek. Just started and currently sitting at 4K.
Fade Into Me--A YA Fantasy of 40K so far that can't decide where to settle. It's currently 2 stories battling it out to see who wins.
Stellar Cloud--a Science Fiction anthology of 6 short stories. This is almost ready for edits and is currently at 45 pages.
Last Christmas--a Romantic Suspense novel about escaping the attentions of a serial rapist in order to have a chance at the love of your life. At 13K.
Why do you write what you do?
I can only write what's taking up space in my head. The voices and ideas that are the loudest get the most "screen" time if you will. I started writing Scifi because that's what I love to read. Creating new worlds and trying to figure out what would make them different and what would make them similar to ours is a lot of fun.
Romance came into the picture because I think we all want to understand how relationships work. We get upset over stupid things, we forget to communicate, we misinterpret intentions or reactions, time/money/jobs/other people get between us, etc. Why? And how do we come back from those problems?
YA started simply because everyone thinks I'm a YA writer. Don't know why, but hey, maybe someone's trying to point me in the right direction.
The new suspense element feeds off of some of my darkest fears. It's time to start digging them up and dealing with them.
What is the hardest part about writing?
The hardest part for me is staying focused.
What scares you?
Several things really. One, that I will continue wandering hopelessly between stories and never finish anything worthy of publishing ever again. And two, that I will let that fear stop me.
I know that I have some great ideas, but what if I can never find the right words to convey the emotions I feel when I think of these characters and the ordeals they go through. I think I can tell a good story. That's not good enough for me. I want to be better. I want to draw emotions out of my readers the way my characters pull them out of me. And that's not going to be easy.
What if I'm never good enough to fit my own standards?
You'll probably be a more diversified author as a result of so many projects though. Think of it as a plus not a minus.
ReplyDeleteI so understand you. I too struggle with focus. My mind is always wandering.
ReplyDelete"What if I'm never good enough to fit my own standards?"
ReplyDeleteMay you never be. Because if you're always striving to be better, then you'll always be getting better.
Sure, perfectionism can paralyze. But the more you work at it, the better you'll become.
I totally hear you about what scares you. I feel exactly the same way.
ReplyDeleteI'm the opposite in terms of writing projects though. Only one a time for me. I'm a very monogamous writer. LOL.
Focus is hard to do with so much distractions around. I'm glad you wrote about why you write and what you write.
ReplyDeleteYou''ll be great! And you'll finish everything. I think it's awesome you work on more than one project at a time. I think I should do that. I would probably benefit from it alot.
ReplyDelete!SQUIRREL!
ReplyDeleteYep. Me too.
You have a gift for creating *excellent* titles. Especially Fade into Me and Demon Rising.
Goodness! I didn't do so hot at replying to this post did I?
ReplyDelete@Alex, that's a nice way to look at it and I hope that turns out to be true. It sounds so much better than not being able to finish anything.
@Michael, maybe its the genius in us trying to get out?
@Liz, you are SOOO wise!
@Cally, I wish I could focus on one thing and finish it. However I'm finding that when I get stuck on one project, working on another will help free my mind to continue the first. Did that make sense?
@Sheena-kay, thanks. Writing it down helps me remember why I'm doing this.
@Katie, give it a try! If I manage to finish them all I'll be able to say it was a really good idea. LOL.
@CD, Thanks! The hard part is making the novel match the excellent title. LOL