Oops! I said it out loud. Ah, well. These are from arliddian. Comment if you want your own.
1. What is your favourite sweet treat?
Cheesecake. Bar none. With kiwis on top.
2. There's a fire in your house! What are the first five things you try to rescue?
My family. My writings. My PDA and backup hard drive. Oh, and underwear/change of clothes.
3. A time machine is malfunctioning and is going to deposit you in the past, with no way to return to your own time! You have just enough seconds to set the time period of your choice. Which would you choose and why?
Five years ago. I'd get back to where I am a whole lot faster and be able to finally have two of me. Answer to prayers, y'all.
4. What is your favourite thing to do in summer?
Write. What else?
5. What kind of music do you listen to when you need inspiration?
Celtic. Christian contemporary, mostly pop and acoustic, none of this rock and roll stuff they're calling CCM anymore. More celtic.
6. What are your top five tips about writing original fiction?
Focus on stories. Forget the writing; the writing will take care of itself. Focus on what inspires you. Read. Live through your character's eyes. Know what makes people tick. Know the stories you love and how to get from point a to point b with as many complications as you can throw on there. It's about stories, people.
Fuel selectively. If you fall in love with something (I'm looking at you angsty ships!), it will come out in your stories. Pay attention to the things that unleash your inner fangirl. Fangirl your own fiction. Make it yours. Explain it. Juggle it around until you're satisfied. Love AU (hereby go to original) but make their lousy, crazy canon nonlogic into real logic without changing anything from canon at all—if you can. Learn how to feed your own muse.
Never assume anything. Know your characters, the rules of your world, and a handful of outside factors to fling at them. The rest will be unpredictable—even to you, but inevitable.
Know the difference between voice and tone. Your voice is your writing. Your tone is your story. And for goodness sake, don't read out of tone when you're working. Keep the reading and the writing separate if you're tone-hopping.
No matter what you do in writing, what choice you make, it's fine. As long as you do it consistently.
7. How much do you think you have changed in the past two years?
Goodness. Much. And nothing. Some days, I know. Some days, I don't. I try to stay in the present, know what I want to change and where I'm heading. I'm not a journey person. It's about the destination, and that's where my eyes are fixed.
Interesting answers, especially the five tips on writing fiction.
I'll answer the first one, and muse about the rest: Chocolate covered strawberries. Can't get enough of them. 🙂
Now, back to whipsy's story for you! 😉
Excellent taste! I love strawberries. :dreamy eyes:
And I am being good and getting that story written. I had to get outside help, but it's finally coming together again.