Writing Meme!
Snagged from aviss because I thought it looked interesting.
1. When did you start writing?
I’ve honestly written forever…but the earliest thing I actually have concrete evidence of writing that brought together coherent ideas was a poem I did in about grade 4 or 5 called ‘The Jackpot.’ Which was a fish, incidentally, and had a horribly clichéd rhyming scheme, but hey, I was ten. My mother and I also co-wrote a children’s book called ‘Wanna Be A Wallaby,” which she brought up the ideas for and I…er-hem…illustrated. Yeah. That’s still kickin’ around somewhere in my old school boxes, too xP After that I was writing Digimon fanfiction because I even knew what fanfiction was, and the rest is history.
2. First drafts: Handwritten, typed, or some combination?
I used to write before I typed, but now I just type. My ideas tend to come fast and furiously, and I just can’t get them down fast enough when I write.
3. Do you keep any kind of notebook or writer's journal, and if so, what kinds of things go into it?
I try to write at least one page a night of something just so I don’t forget how to actually write in this digital age xP. It’s mostly drivel and unconnected story ideas that will never see the light of day, and I do keep a journal (I have to for school) which is, like me, horribly random.
4. Do you set any quotas for your work (number of words per day, number of hours per day, etc.)? Why or why not?
I write what I feel, honestly. Some days I’ll pound out a whole one-shot and others I’ll write one line or nothing at all. I don’t like to set quotas because…hey, writing is a leisure activity, and I have enough quotas at school xP
5. Are you most comfortable writing short stories, novels, or something else?
Both? I generally know if something’s going to be a one-shot or a long chaptered fic before I sit down and start hashing it out, but I never quite know how long some will turn out to be. If you would have told me ‘This Is Your Life’ would end up being over 100,000 words long a year ago? I would have laughed at you.
6. What's your favorite kind of story to write?
This mostly becomes a question of what I can write, because personally I think I’m utterly horrible at fluff and so tend to head for angst and heavy emotional drama. However, I’m a sucker for happy endings, so most of my stories will have one of those (or at least a possibly uplifting ending, if nothing else).
7. Talk about a story of yours that was easy to write and one that was difficult to write, and why.
Easy: I actually have a lot that just start with a basic idea and get written horribly quickly, but one recently I recall that just came on a whim and ended up going out (I think) the same day was Just Here To The Left Of You, and I’m still rather proud of it because it’s far different than my normal style and yet it works.
Hard: Honestly, one that comes to mind immediately is Brilliant , because it went from a happy ending to a sad ending to a, as previously mentioned, mildly hopeful ending, and while I’m now satisfied with it, I actually put off posting it because I wasn’t sure it was what I wanted.
8. Which of your characters is closest to your sense of self? In other words, who do you most identify with in your own work to date?
I connect with a lot of characters, actually, and most of them it’s just one aspect of my personality. However, what I’ve recently discovered and found odd is that even without realizing it I’ll purposely take the POV of one character in a fandom more than any other, and it’s completely unconscious. When I write OP, I write Sanji; when I write Ouran, it’s generally Kyouya (or Kaoru), etc.
9. What work are you most proud of right now?
MOST proud of? That’s actually tricky…if I had to say honestly, it would be This Is Your Life, not only because it’s my longest work but because it’s the one in which I feel I’ve gotten better at character development and just overall flow as a writer. That being said, I’ve got a long way to go, and stylistically I like to experiment so I actually like one-shots a lot, too, (and if we’re talking one-shots it’s probably 21 Guns, or (because I’ve recced all OP so far and want to shake it up) We Go On Pretending, which I KNOW still has errors but it’s so stream-of-consciousness that I don’t know why it works when you read it, but somehow it does.
10. What do you feel your strengths and weaknesses are as a writer?
Exposition kills me. I’m the queen of dialogue, which I attribute to my experience in theatre and the fact that scripts don’t need much description short of general stage directions. I am getting better, though, and I think the more I write the better I get. I’ve also tried to experiment with several characters to broaden my ability to write different personalities, and I think that’s going well.
11. Name a few writers who have influenced you or your work in some way.
Oh, gosh. My favorite books are definitely ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and the ‘Harry Potter’ series, but I also adore Victor Hugo’s work (even though none of these are close to the style I actually write in. But they’re definitely my favorite books.
12. Talk about something you've written that you later found embarrassing for some reason.
I have SO many bad fics up at ff.net, but I attribute that to me being young and inexperienced in the world of fanfiction. I mean, I go back and read them and they’re SO out of character and just…argh. But people still like them, amazingly enough, so I won’t take them down. It’s good to see where you came from, right? XD
13. Talk about the earliest stories you remember writing. What were they about?
Haha, like I said: fish, wallabies, and Digimon
14. If you knew you would be successful, what would you most like to write?
Once again, that’s hard, because I write whatever I’m in the mood for. I started an original ‘Lord-of-the-Rings’-ish story once, but that’s dramatically fizzled out because there was just too much in it. I think I’ll stick to fanfiction.
15. What inspires you?
The most random things. And everything. I’ll get an idea about something that will have absolutely nothing to do with what I’m doing at the time, but I’ll need to write it down. That’s honestly how ‘This is Your Life’ started, and LOOK what a monster it’s turned into.
16. How many projects do you tend to work on at once?
Haha, a lot. Like, most of which will never be published, but…a lot.
17. Who reads your work before it's released to the public? Do you have beta readers, a critique group, etc.?
Nobody. I’m serious, I’m so self-conscious that I’d rather just get it out there and take the heat than bother with the beta/revising train. I proofread my own work diligently, but I know I still miss things. However, it seems to work the best for me, because whenever I revise I feel like I’ve lost the mindset I had when I was writing, and it’s always glaringly obvious to me which parts were added.
18. When you're not writing, what do you do for fun?
I’m…pretty normal. I go out with friends sometimes (not like EVERY WEEK, but sometimes). And, y’know, read fanfiction, watch movies, play instruments, read actual books…
19. Advice to other writers?
Don’t worry so much. People are rarely as critical as you think they’ll be (and those that are generally can’t write to save their lives and are just putting you down to make themselves feel better. I’ve learned to just write what I want to write, even if it’ll never get published, and sometimes my readers can surprise me (like the number of people who suddenly accept the fact that Sanji and Kaku are possibly compatible and actually LIKE them as friends. It was honestly just something I came up with one night and decided to run with, and now I write them together like ALL THE TIME. And people approve, which is awesome :D)
20. What are you currently working on?
I’ll talk about a few that may be posted at some point…I guess…
Obviously the next chapter(s) of ‘This is Your Life.’ It’s coming, people; it’s coming.
The next mood set in the ‘100 Moods’ thing. It’s also coming. Slowly.
A RENT-fic I honestly just started yesterday, and I have no idea where it’ll go or if it’ll get posted, but it’s coming along.\
Still some of the things from my request-meme back in like June…which I feel horrible about >.<
Two other possible OP fics: a merman!Sanji one which probably won’t go anywhere, and my expanded ‘Starving Artist’ storyline, which I think is going to go far as soon as I can honestly work on it.
That’s…pretty much it, at least for what stories will possibly be up for public reading.
21. Share three sentences of a work in progress.
Okay, people: next chapter of TIYL. Enjoy your three sentences xP Okay, I lied, it’s four, or else it won’t make sense:
“I’ll be fine. And before you contradict me, listen for a sec,” Sanji urged him softly. “No, I don’t know if I’ll make it out of here alive, but I have to believe that I will, or else I’m certain I won’t. And, the way I see it, the more people I have believing that I’ll make it, too, the better off I’ll be.”
1. When did you start writing?
I’ve honestly written forever…but the earliest thing I actually have concrete evidence of writing that brought together coherent ideas was a poem I did in about grade 4 or 5 called ‘The Jackpot.’ Which was a fish, incidentally, and had a horribly clichéd rhyming scheme, but hey, I was ten. My mother and I also co-wrote a children’s book called ‘Wanna Be A Wallaby,” which she brought up the ideas for and I…er-hem…illustrated. Yeah. That’s still kickin’ around somewhere in my old school boxes, too xP After that I was writing Digimon fanfiction because I even knew what fanfiction was, and the rest is history.
2. First drafts: Handwritten, typed, or some combination?
I used to write before I typed, but now I just type. My ideas tend to come fast and furiously, and I just can’t get them down fast enough when I write.
3. Do you keep any kind of notebook or writer's journal, and if so, what kinds of things go into it?
I try to write at least one page a night of something just so I don’t forget how to actually write in this digital age xP. It’s mostly drivel and unconnected story ideas that will never see the light of day, and I do keep a journal (I have to for school) which is, like me, horribly random.
4. Do you set any quotas for your work (number of words per day, number of hours per day, etc.)? Why or why not?
I write what I feel, honestly. Some days I’ll pound out a whole one-shot and others I’ll write one line or nothing at all. I don’t like to set quotas because…hey, writing is a leisure activity, and I have enough quotas at school xP
5. Are you most comfortable writing short stories, novels, or something else?
Both? I generally know if something’s going to be a one-shot or a long chaptered fic before I sit down and start hashing it out, but I never quite know how long some will turn out to be. If you would have told me ‘This Is Your Life’ would end up being over 100,000 words long a year ago? I would have laughed at you.
6. What's your favorite kind of story to write?
This mostly becomes a question of what I can write, because personally I think I’m utterly horrible at fluff and so tend to head for angst and heavy emotional drama. However, I’m a sucker for happy endings, so most of my stories will have one of those (or at least a possibly uplifting ending, if nothing else).
7. Talk about a story of yours that was easy to write and one that was difficult to write, and why.
Easy: I actually have a lot that just start with a basic idea and get written horribly quickly, but one recently I recall that just came on a whim and ended up going out (I think) the same day was Just Here To The Left Of You, and I’m still rather proud of it because it’s far different than my normal style and yet it works.
Hard: Honestly, one that comes to mind immediately is Brilliant , because it went from a happy ending to a sad ending to a, as previously mentioned, mildly hopeful ending, and while I’m now satisfied with it, I actually put off posting it because I wasn’t sure it was what I wanted.
8. Which of your characters is closest to your sense of self? In other words, who do you most identify with in your own work to date?
I connect with a lot of characters, actually, and most of them it’s just one aspect of my personality. However, what I’ve recently discovered and found odd is that even without realizing it I’ll purposely take the POV of one character in a fandom more than any other, and it’s completely unconscious. When I write OP, I write Sanji; when I write Ouran, it’s generally Kyouya (or Kaoru), etc.
9. What work are you most proud of right now?
MOST proud of? That’s actually tricky…if I had to say honestly, it would be This Is Your Life, not only because it’s my longest work but because it’s the one in which I feel I’ve gotten better at character development and just overall flow as a writer. That being said, I’ve got a long way to go, and stylistically I like to experiment so I actually like one-shots a lot, too, (and if we’re talking one-shots it’s probably 21 Guns, or (because I’ve recced all OP so far and want to shake it up) We Go On Pretending, which I KNOW still has errors but it’s so stream-of-consciousness that I don’t know why it works when you read it, but somehow it does.
10. What do you feel your strengths and weaknesses are as a writer?
Exposition kills me. I’m the queen of dialogue, which I attribute to my experience in theatre and the fact that scripts don’t need much description short of general stage directions. I am getting better, though, and I think the more I write the better I get. I’ve also tried to experiment with several characters to broaden my ability to write different personalities, and I think that’s going well.
11. Name a few writers who have influenced you or your work in some way.
Oh, gosh. My favorite books are definitely ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and the ‘Harry Potter’ series, but I also adore Victor Hugo’s work (even though none of these are close to the style I actually write in. But they’re definitely my favorite books.
12. Talk about something you've written that you later found embarrassing for some reason.
I have SO many bad fics up at ff.net, but I attribute that to me being young and inexperienced in the world of fanfiction. I mean, I go back and read them and they’re SO out of character and just…argh. But people still like them, amazingly enough, so I won’t take them down. It’s good to see where you came from, right? XD
13. Talk about the earliest stories you remember writing. What were they about?
Haha, like I said: fish, wallabies, and Digimon
14. If you knew you would be successful, what would you most like to write?
Once again, that’s hard, because I write whatever I’m in the mood for. I started an original ‘Lord-of-the-Rings’-ish story once, but that’s dramatically fizzled out because there was just too much in it. I think I’ll stick to fanfiction.
15. What inspires you?
The most random things. And everything. I’ll get an idea about something that will have absolutely nothing to do with what I’m doing at the time, but I’ll need to write it down. That’s honestly how ‘This is Your Life’ started, and LOOK what a monster it’s turned into.
16. How many projects do you tend to work on at once?
Haha, a lot. Like, most of which will never be published, but…a lot.
17. Who reads your work before it's released to the public? Do you have beta readers, a critique group, etc.?
Nobody. I’m serious, I’m so self-conscious that I’d rather just get it out there and take the heat than bother with the beta/revising train. I proofread my own work diligently, but I know I still miss things. However, it seems to work the best for me, because whenever I revise I feel like I’ve lost the mindset I had when I was writing, and it’s always glaringly obvious to me which parts were added.
18. When you're not writing, what do you do for fun?
I’m…pretty normal. I go out with friends sometimes (not like EVERY WEEK, but sometimes). And, y’know, read fanfiction, watch movies, play instruments, read actual books…
19. Advice to other writers?
Don’t worry so much. People are rarely as critical as you think they’ll be (and those that are generally can’t write to save their lives and are just putting you down to make themselves feel better. I’ve learned to just write what I want to write, even if it’ll never get published, and sometimes my readers can surprise me (like the number of people who suddenly accept the fact that Sanji and Kaku are possibly compatible and actually LIKE them as friends. It was honestly just something I came up with one night and decided to run with, and now I write them together like ALL THE TIME. And people approve, which is awesome :D)
20. What are you currently working on?
I’ll talk about a few that may be posted at some point…I guess…
Obviously the next chapter(s) of ‘This is Your Life.’ It’s coming, people; it’s coming.
The next mood set in the ‘100 Moods’ thing. It’s also coming. Slowly.
A RENT-fic I honestly just started yesterday, and I have no idea where it’ll go or if it’ll get posted, but it’s coming along.\
Still some of the things from my request-meme back in like June…which I feel horrible about >.<
Two other possible OP fics: a merman!Sanji one which probably won’t go anywhere, and my expanded ‘Starving Artist’ storyline, which I think is going to go far as soon as I can honestly work on it.
That’s…pretty much it, at least for what stories will possibly be up for public reading.
21. Share three sentences of a work in progress.
Okay, people: next chapter of TIYL. Enjoy your three sentences xP Okay, I lied, it’s four, or else it won’t make sense:
“I’ll be fine. And before you contradict me, listen for a sec,” Sanji urged him softly. “No, I don’t know if I’ll make it out of here alive, but I have to believe that I will, or else I’m certain I won’t. And, the way I see it, the more people I have believing that I’ll make it, too, the better off I’ll be.”