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"Everybody has a secret world inside of them. All of the people of the world, I mean everybody. No matter how dull and boring they are on the outside, inside them they've all got unimaginable, magnificent, wonderful, stupid, amazing worlds. Not just one world. Hundreds of them. Thousands maybe" ~ Neil Gaiman (A Game of You)

4.20.2011

Questions

Aight, peeps (cuz it's Easter and I feel like y'all got my back, word) – I'm gonna put it all out there and let myself be vulnerable. Today is...

Ask me anything.

Yes, anything you want. Leave a question for me in the comments, and then I'll update this post to answer it here. This could either be a very short post (in which case “Q” also stands for “Quiet”), or this could be a lot of fun.

Ready? Go!!!

Thank you, K.C Woolf, for starting us off!

K.C. asks: If you had to eliminate one emotion from your life, which one would you choose?

Interesting question, K.C.  As I have grown older and experienced both the ups and downs of life, I have grown to cherish and recognize the value in all of our emotions.  However, if I had to eliminate one emotion, I would choose fear.  Without fear, I would speak my mind, dance on the page, and do something daring every day.

Carrie asks: What book do you take on the deserted island with you?

Easy question.  OK, I would want my Kindle with me so I could devour as much as I could until the battery ran out. :(  After that, I would want to have The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.  That is my favorite book.  The imagery is so rich, the characters heart-wrenchingly compelling, the story gripping.  I could read it over and over again and discover hidden layers each time.

Laura asks two questions:  My questions is how long have you been writing?
I've loved creative writing since 3rd grade, but I began pursuing writing as a career in December 2008.
And what was one story you loved that you've written that you wished could be published?
That's a hard question.  I have several flash fiction stories that I love.  I've only completed the first draft of one novel, and I fell in love with it and my main character by the end.  It's the story of a wife and mother who finds that she has kind of lost herself somewhere along the way.  She receives an anonymous note from a mysterious stranger, sending her on a journey back to herself.  That's the one I would choose.  And boy, do I need to work on my elevator pitch!

Nutschell asks: 

What are some of your writing quirks/habits?
Ah, I wish I had writing habits. ;)  My biggest writing quirk, I would say, is that every time I sit down to write, I have a serious writing block.  My inner editor rages worst even before I put pen to paper.  I have to go through a writing exercise from The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron where I ask and answer two questions: What are you mad about? and What are you afraid of?  Once I give myself permission to write crap, I'm good to go.

Damyanti asks:  How do you handle rejection of submissions?

The first (non-fiction) article I sent in for submission to a magazine was accepted (but not yet scheduled) for publication. :)  That softened the blow, I would say.  I submitted a flash fiction piece to Writer's Digest's competition.  I didn't get rejected, per se, they just never contacted me back.  Read between the lines.  The worst rejection I've had was when I participated in a blog contest of only 17 contestants, and I didn't even make the top five.  I pouted, berated my self for lack of talent, and ate a lot of chocolate.  Then I went back to work.


Donna asks:  What's the film you like best adapted from a book you love?

I'd say it has to be the Harry Potter series, especially The Prisoner of Azaban.  But I am DYING for the Hunger Games to come out!  The story just begs for the big screen.


River asks:  How many hours a day do you sit and write? Is there a certain time of the day? :)

River, I have some health issues that keep me from writing as much as I'd like, but I can usually get in about an hour a day.  During that time, I can easily finish 500-1,000 words.  That's the size of a typical flash fiction story or a complete scene.  When I'm writing regularly, an hour a day makes good progress on my novel.  And my sweet spot time of day for writing is about 1 pm.  It's after I've gotten my morning routines and responsibilities out of the way and before the kids get home from school.

Thank you so much, everyone, for participating!  I had a fun time.  You've taught me not to fear the silence, and so I think I'll start asking questions at the end of some of my posts.

14 comments:

K.C. Woolf said...

Hey :-)

I've done 'Q for Questions' as well, but I've been less brave than you, I've just asked questions :-)

I'll ask you one of the questions that's in my post, then:

If you had to eliminate one emotion from your life, which one would you choose?

Anonymous said...

Oooo I love K.C.'s question. Here's mine: What book do you take on the deserted island with you. Cause of course we all take books with us when we plan on getting stranded. Duh. :)

Laura Pauling said...

Hee hee I did questions too - just a different take. Not many Q words to go around though. Quirky, query, quitting...

My questions is how long have you been writing? And what was on story you loved that you've written that you wished could be published?

Shelli said...

KC -- Thanks for starting us off! You asked some good, thought-provoking questions, too.

Carrie -- Of course, I'd never leave on a trip without a stack full of books!

Laura -- Fun how everyone has a different take on the same word. I definitely didn't want to choose Query. *shudder*

Linda Bob Grifins Korbetis Hall said...

we have the same take on Q.\
smiles.

nutschell said...

what a great Q word. My question would be what are some of your writing quirks/habits?
Great meeting you through the A-Z!
nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

Anonymous said...

My Q is quirky, but I like Quiet. I wish someone had suggested that :)

My Question: How do you handle rejection of submissions?

Shelli said...

Jingle -- Great minds think alike... or there just aren't that many words that start with Q. :)

Nut -- Nice to meet you!

Damyanti -- I like quirky, and quiet. Sometimes at the same time.

Donna K. Weaver said...

Clever idea for a post. And brave. So what's the film you like best adapted from a book you love?

Mercy said...

Just letting you know I am passing the Stylish Blogger Award on to you. You can find it at Rogues Home Cooked (via my profile page)

Shelli said...

Donna -- Thank you, and great question!

Mercy -- Ah, thanks so much! I'll come by and pick it up. :)

ali cross said...

Wow, that first question was awesome! At first, I KNEW my answer would be self-doubt, or insecurity, but then I realized no, that has served me well ~ taught me how to power through, to DO despite my feelings. But FEAR - that's a good one and worthy of being dumped. Then again ... sometimes it's the succeeding at something DESPITE the fear that clogged each of our actions that makes the triumph all the more sweet. So I think you're right ~ NO emotion deserves to go!

River said...

How many hours a day do you sit and write? Is there a certain time of the day? :)

Shelli said...

ali -- I agree. How would we ever learn to be brave if we were never afraid? And fear can keep us from doing stupid things sometimes.

River -- I love that you added a smiley face to your question. It made me less embarrassed to answer (because I don't write as regularly as I should). :)