Q&A with the Author

In honor of my 35th birthday this week, I wanted to do something a little fun! A little Q&A with the author, one question for every year of life! A mix of writing related and just general about-me type stuff!

1) Who is your favorite author? V. E. Schwab, hands down!! Her Vicious series made me fall in love with her writing style. Her Darker Shades series is also amazing.

2) If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? On top of a snow covered mountain, nestled into some pine trees with a turquoise glacier-fed lake nearby.

3) If you were an existing super hero – Marvel or DC – who would it be? And why? I would have to go with Thor. I relate so much to his inabilities to understand human interactions. And being part of Norse Mythology for the win!

4) What was the last book you read? I am currently reading The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. My partner and I are currently listening to 14 by Peter Clines, which is book one in the Threshold series. It’s been a bit of a slow burn for me, but just got VERY interesting the other night.

5) What is your favorite holiday tradition? One of my favorite holiday traditions occurs around Christmas. I gather together with some of my best friends and we all make different recipes of cookies for our dogs to trade amongst ourselves. Before the plague struck, we rotated between each others’ houses to host a baking party.

6) What was your favorite subject in school? Other than the obvious of English or Creative Writing, I really enjoyed history. And not just any history, I love ancient history. Ancient Egypt, Greek, Roman all fascinate me. I was enamored with the myths and legends of ancient Greek mythology.

7) Which of the five senses would you say is your strongest? Probably my sense of smell. Mainly because smells trigger migraines for me.

8) Have you ever had a surprise party? I have!! I even helped decorate our garage for it! And then was completely befuddled as to why some of my friends started showing up at my house.

9) If you could be in a band/musical group, past or present, who/what would it be? I think I would definitely have to be a Ghoulette in Ghost.

10) If you had a warning label, what would it say? Do not poke.

11) If you were an animal, which would you be? A dragon.

12) If you were a musical instrument, which would you be? A cello!

13) What is your favorite book? I love a lot of books, but one of my all time favorites is The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In A Ship of Her Own Making by Catherine M. Valente. It is the book where my favorite quote comes from. “I wouldn’t even consider it if I were you. But then if I were you, I would not be me, and if I were not me, I would not be able to advise you, and if I were unable to advise you, you’d do as you like, so you might as well do as you like and have done with it.”

14) Is the glass half empty or half full? Usually half full. I always say that I can be annoyingly optimistic. However, that usually only pertains to other people. I can be a bit of a glass half empty person on myself.

15) What makes you nostalgic? The Lego Star Wars games!! I had the original on the PS2, and I just received the newer version on PS5 for my birthday. It was one of the first video games my partner and I played together when we first started dating. So when we fired up that bad boy… that nostalgia hit hard!

16) Night owl or morning bird? I love being up late at night, when the rest of the world is sleeping. I sometimes joke that I would be nocturnal if it were allowed. Although, I do like waking up really early in the morning if I wake up naturally on my own, feeling rested. But let’s be honest, that’s pretty rare.

17) When are you most yourself? Late at night. Or when I’m at home.

18) Who can make you laugh the most? My mom has always been able to make me laugh. I can remember a time very distinctly from when I was younger where I was DETERMINED to be angry by something and I remember telling her off for making me laugh while I was trying to be mad. And my partner can make me laugh like none other. He doesn’t even have to say something half the time, I can just tell by the look on his face where he’s going to go with something. And my work wifey bff. When we used to have lunch every day together, it would shock the rest of the office that I don’t always interact with to learn that *I* was the other person in there rolling with laughter.

19) What’s your greatest strength? My empathy.

20) What’s your greatest weakness? Also my empathy, this world is very draining for me. And my inability to make decisions.

21) What is a quirk you have? I am a texture eater. I cannot stand food that pops; like corn, peas, uncut green beans. As well as just… strange… food textures. Like rice pudding. My partner once gave me a bite of his rice pudding. It felt so awful in my mouth that I didn’t know what to do with it. So… I cried. All while he was shouting at me “Just spit it out!!!!” On the other hand, I love velvety textures; like peanut butter, fudge, and fuzzy pasta. That last one may take some explaining. A pasta with a red sauce, and a cheese sauce, that combine to make the most magical, velvety, FUZZY feeling pasta you will ever experience.

22) What is your favorite board game? Candy Land, baby!!

23) What is your favorite season? Winter, hands down. I would live with year-round snow and cold if I could. I hate being hot. I hate bugs. I hate humidity. Winter is my favorite, autumn is second, spring third, and summer can just get in the bin.

24) If you had to wear one Halloween costume for the rest of your life, what would it be? My Thor costume I did a few years ago was pretty awesome, as was my Luna Lovegood one from a few years ago. But I would have to go with my Ghost-themed one I have planned for this year. And yes, Ghost the band, not a bed sheet.

25) What is one ability you believe everyone should possess? Empathy. The ability to see someone else’s hardship, and believe it is real, even if you have not experienced it yourself.

26) What does your writing process look like? I usually get a nugget of an idea in my head, like a scene or conversation that gets the wheels really turning. I’ll write it down, flesh it out, maybe a couple of times. Usually while doing that, other bits of where/how it might fit into something flows from there. Sometimes I start in the middle, sometimes the end, but almost never the beginning. A lot of the time, I will end up with a lot of puzzle pieces that I then figure out how they fit together. Sometimes they don’t. I still save them and sometimes draw on them for other ideas, other projects. I also have to handwrite the first draft, then type it.

27) What is one of your favorite aspects of writing? I love character development and world building. I’ve been told many times, by a very credible source, that my writing is very character based. I enjoy getting in their minds and figuring out how those characters will react in various situations.

28) What is your favorite thing you have written? I am ridiculously fond of my June 2022 Kenobi inspired Star Wars post, which you can find here if you have not read it yet. I also really like my One More Night post from January 2022, it holds a special place in my heart as it is partially based in real past events from when I was in high school. It was a thing that was therapeutic for me to write.

29) What do you usually do during the weekends? I spend my Saturdays recovering from the previous work week. And I spend Sunday psyching myself up for the upcoming work week. I’m a heavy supporter of having a standard four day work week with three day weekends. Or at least more work places having the option. So, if you see me on the weekend, it is a high privilege, and you are an incredibly special person to me.

30) What are some of your hobbies? Writing has always been a hobby for me. I also love building Lego sets. Video games are another thing I love to do, which will often lead me back into writing. I enjoy 3D modeling, like for home remodeling projects and such.

31) What are some hobbies you would like to establish? I would LOVE to get more into D&D, both playing and painting miniatures. That sounds so fun to me. I’m just not quite certain I have the artistic ability to do them. But it reminds me of a saying I’ve seen a lot of lately: You do not have to be GOOD at a thing to enjoy doing it. And embroidery, I would really like to get more invested in that.

32) What is your favorite color? It is obviously purple, based on my hair. I also love bright turquoise, hot pink, lime green, and black. It’s either neon colors and the rainbow, or black for me. There is no in between.

33) Do you believe life after death is possible? I am not a religious person in the slightest, but I like to think there is something after this. It seems like… such a waste… if this is all there is.

34) If you could have been any other profession than what you are, what would it be? Either an ancient history expert, or an archaeologist.

35) What would you tell your past self? Be weirder. Be weirder louder. Be weirder louder sooner.

I hope you have enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed putting it together. Until the next one…