Hawk and Young – Questionnaire

Elsha Hawk and Eddie-Joe Young have never met in person. This writing duo met online on a microfiction website where they found they worked well together.

Both answered the questionnaire individually.

https://hawkandyoung.wordpress.com

Q1 – What other authors are you friends with? and how do they help you become a better writer?

We are friends with many writers, most of which are unpublished.

Eddie-Joe – We are ficlet survivors. That was a flash fiction site “The Great Kevin Lawver” developed for AOL. We were the two most featured writers out of the thousands on the site so we have a gaggle of writing friends. Al Rozon, Nadya Bengougam, Drew Klopfer, to name a few.

Elsha– I stalk a couple authors.. I follow K.M. Weiland, who helps writers become better authors, and am very proud of Tricia Heighway, who started writing on a website like me and went on to publish her book. I could list names forever of all the writers we used to write flash fiction with…

Q2 – If you could tell your younger self anything, what would it be?

Eddie-Joe – Do even crazier stuff, don’t be scared to jump off that cliff or ask Jo Anna Fullilove to dance in the fourth grade. The worst decision in the world is the one you don’t make.

Elsha – Push yourself past your fear. Try new things.

Q3 – When was that moment when you realised that language had power?

Elsha – I was in the 4th grade when I wrote my first stories. We were allowed to type them up in the ‘computer lab’ at school on very old computers and I remember typing and crying because my main character, who was a dog, died in my story. My teacher asked me what was wrong, and I said, “Nothing, it was just a sad story”.

Eddie-Joe – I wrote a story in the fourth grade and had to read it out loud. People laughed so loud the teacher had to restore order to the class. (It was a comedy, this anecdote would mean something completely different if it was a tragedy.) I knew then that the power of comedy was on loan from the Gods. Laughter could light up the darkness.

Q4 – Who is your favourite author and why?

Elsha – The first author I ever admired was/is Lois Lowry. The Giver was the first book that took me to a new place so different from my world. I also love The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. From there, I branched into fantasy. I’m a YA reader by far.

Eddie-Joe – Kurt Vonnegut. Now I have hundreds of books from Terry Pratchett’s Nation to Anne Mcaffrey’s Ship who Sang that I would die for, and let me not overlook the Count Of Monte Cristo that I reread every year because it is so amazing. However, I love Vonnegut because he never has a villain. It’s that internal conflict in his characters that makes us see we are the villains and the heroes in our stories.

Q5 – How do you select names for your characters?

Elsha – I have used baby name websites before, but I found slogging through a list of names I definitely did not like was time consuming. So, I made my own list of names I DID like in a composition notebook, one page for each letter divided into male, female, and last names.

Eddie-Joe – I love making up the names that is why Elsha lets me do it so much. I use a form of reverse engineering. I picture the character, her mannerisms, his appearance, their attitude then I just say the name. If you have ever met someone and said, “That guy doesn’t look like a Charlie, he looks like a Eugene,” well then you used my method of character naming.

Q6 – If you didn’t write, what would you do?

Elsha – I already have a main job. I hold 3 teaching licenses and teach Severe/Moderate Special Education.

Eddie-Joe – Listen, as a true artistic master of swordplay once said, “I just work for Viscini to pay the bills.” Well, I wasn't as fortunate to become the dread pirate Roberts, but I do work on a boat.

Q7 – What accomplishments do you want at the end of the year?

Elsha – My goal is to finish typing up Eddie-Joe’s million page manuscript! That would be a nice Christmas present, wouldn’t it, E-J?

Eddie-Joe – Little does she know I haven’t written the last five chapters so that would be a good goal for me.

Q8 – Why did you contact me to do this questionnaire?

Hawk and Young are a new writing duo already getting rave reviews on their website and from beta readers on Critique Circle. We want to build our audience and grow some fans. If you like Sci-Fi/Fantasy and underdog heroes, you should check us out.

Jude Thompson – Questionnaire

Hi All, I’m Jude, I live in France, retired here for nearly thirteen years. I have one memoir published, one fantasy novel and two children’s books, all on Amazon. My blog:

https://judethompsonbooks.wordpress.com/

Q1 – What other authors are you friends with? and how do they help you become a better writer?

The writer/blogger I have most communication with is Jack Probyn. The best thing about our contact is

the sharing of ideas which often generates even more ideas. Jack is here: https://jackprobynbooks.com/

Q2 – If you could tell your younger self anything, what would it be?

Don’t be so impatient!

Q3 – When was that moment when you realized that language had power?

I don’t know the moment, but I would say that books and other writings have the power to invoke intense positive and negative emotions and reactions. People have been thrown in prison in the past for their written and outspoken beliefs. Words can wound as deeply as physical force.

Q4 – Who is your favourite author and why?

I really don’t have one. But if I was forced to choose it might be Stieg Larsson. I found The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy absolutely riveting. The characters especially were so vividly painted, the plot was superb, and I read the series twice – the only books I’ve ever read twice!

Q5 – How do you select names for your characters?

Whatever suits them. I make up names that sound right, sometimes taking a first or second name from a person I know that suits the part. The most difficult choice for names were for my fantasy novel – mostly because I’ve never met any trolls!

Q6 – If you didn’t write, what would you do?

More photography, more computer graphics, more motorcycling – but you’d have to cut my fingers off to stop me writing!

Q7 – What accomplishments do you want at the end of the year?

None. I live day to day. I no longer set goals, I just like to flow, because our life style makes that possible. My one little plan is to continue with the sequel to my fantasy novel in late autumn/winter.

Q8 – Why did you contact me to do this questionnaire?

I’m always drawn to questionnaires and I wondered what questions you would ask. But I also like to support my friend’s blogs and join in with new ideas, plus it will be interesting to see what other people have said in answer to the questions.

Michaela Mouths – Questionnaire

 

Hellooo!!!  As you can see, this is just a blog written by a teenage girl with too much to say.  This teenage girl is currently studying Shakespeare and Robin Lakoff at college alongside Mozart and Herman.  Nice combination right?  English, Literature and Music.  Funsies!!!

www.michaelamouths.wordpress.com

Q1 – If you could tell your younger self anything, what would it be?

I would, if it were possible, tell my younger self to be more confident.  I have only recently learned to accept myself in terms of my personality, my humour, my appearance and looking back on myself a few years ago, I cannot quite understand why I was so self conscious.  All throughout primary and high school, I would be too scared to just stand up to put a piece of paper in the bin in the fear that I would be looked at judged for how I looked.  Now, however, I have accepted and am even beginning to like how I look and what comes out of my mouth.  I hope anyone who reads this can relate in some way and take away from this even just a hint of self approval.  You are a beautiful, brilliantly amazing human being so start acting like it!!!  Yes, you will be put down in life by odd individuals, but you will also be praised by communities, groups, societies who actually enjoy and deserve your company!  Surely that should outweigh that one snot-nosed, self-absorbed, egotistical little brat that declared you fat in the corridor at break one time in year 9.  (I’m proudly English by the way so please excuse the foreign schooling terms, the same message applies however).

Q2 – When was that moment when you realised that language had power?

 I never really understood the power that language could actually have until studying the fascinating language of English at an A-level standard.  It was only then (so, fairly recently) that I finally appreciated the effect and control it can actually have.  When you come to realise that English as a language can define yourself as well as others, that is the moment when one can truly come to fully appreciate the power and responsibility language can actually have.

Q3 – Who is your favourite author and why?

It is difficult to choose just one author as a favourite; it is extremely rare for an individual to admire and love every single work one person has ever produced.  If the question were: What is your favourite book? then that would achieve a much simpler answer.  However, that is not the question being asked.  My favourite author, that one person who, no matter what they write, I will undoubtably read, is Lemony Snicket.  His incredible and stylish outcome he has after putting pen to paper never fails to astonish me.  From ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events’ to ‘All the Wrong Queations’ Snicket manages to maintain a sinister yet entertaining mood to his stories.  This, although rather dreary, is by far my favourite style of a writer I have ever come across.

Q4 – If you didn’t write, what would you do?

Quite a simple answer, I would be a Police Officer.  A bit random, I know, but it has always been my backup career if teaching English never really worked out.

Q5 – What accomplishments do you want at the end of the year?

 I would like to accomplish a mature yet witty style to my writing.  Currently, I have found difficulty combining these two contrasting styles but, by the end of this year, I aspire to have conquered this slight struggle I have come to face.

Q6 – Why did you contact me to do this questionnaire?

I have always enjoyed being as helpful as possible.  So, when I saw your request for volunteers to assist you on your blog by answering some simple questions, I was instantly eager to answer your proposal.  I hope I was of somewhat use to you and I hope that we can help each other out again I the near future.

Caroline Savage – Questionnaire

International project manager/developer, Caroline Savage, has secured millions of dollars in funding, assessed grants and tenders on panels, managed funding programs, mentored people and developed a web community:

www.grantsinformation.com.au

Q1 – If you could tell your younger self anything, what

would it be?

Follow you heart and intuition more. I think we all question our gut reaction to things but, in hindsight, we are rarely wrong for what’s in our best interests.

Q2 – When was that moment when you realised that

language had power?

I’d been writing for years but I had a case relating to a child’s safety. Impassioned from the plight of the child, I wrote from the heart to advocate for them. It was in that moment, I realised words can bleed on the page, empower the reader to action and create change.

Q3 – Who is your favourite author and why?

Sherrilyn Kenyon – I got into her books years ago and loved the escapism in her storytelling and the worlds she created.

Q4 – If you didn’t write, what would you do?

I am fascinated by graphic design and it is one skill I haven’t mastered and one that would fit in with where I want to be at this stage in my career.

Q5 – What accomplishments do you want at the end of the

year?

I’ve just published Grant Writing: A Clear and Concise Guide and have to get that marketed. I plan to have the Tender Writing book out this year too Those books mark a change in career for me, as I will be moving into writing in the genre I love – paranormal romance. I have a book written and in serious edit stage now. I plan to get that book into print this year.

 

Jina S. Bazzar – Questionnaire

Questionnaire – Jina S. Bazzar

Bio: I am a Brazilian born, Palestinian descendant, 33 year old mother of three hooligans. I write fantasy books, read almost anything and my disability doesn’t hamper me.

1- When was that moment when you realized that language had power?

Well, I’ve been reading for a very long time. I remember my very first comic book when

I was very young, and the love for poetry that followed. I remember going to the school’s

library and reading poems about the alphabet. I remember talking to friends about the

hidden meaning of something funny that they had to read twice to grasp (which meant it

was no longer funny). And I’ve always preferred books to movies. But although I’ve tried

once during high school to write a book, it was only after I became blind that I fully

comprehended the power of words, tools that could be wielded and shaped according to

what, or how I desired them to be. Words, carefully crafted, have the power to capture, to

repel, to make you laugh, or cry, even fear.

2- Who is your favorite author and why?

I have a lot of favorite authors but . . . kudos goes to Nora Roberts. I’ve read more than

140 of her books (including novellas, anthropologies and her In Death series under the

name JD Robb) and her work have never failed to astonish and capture me. Roberts has

“that way with words” that every writer wishes for: They are simple, descriptive and

realistic to the point that you can envision exactly what she wants you to see.

3- How do you select names for your characters?

Well, you got me here. Usually I go for the first that pops into my mind, but sometimes I

realize that “john” wasn’t a good fit for the character I want “john” to be, so I fish on the

internet. For example, if he’s American, I go for American names – select the one that

catches my attention; if he’s Russian, I go for Russian – choose the one that sounds like

my character. I do the same for surnames.

4- If you didn’t write, what would you do?

Easy one. I would read.

5- Why did you contact me to do this questionnaire?

The honest truth? Sounded like a fun way to get people to know you.

Don Massenzio – Questionnaire

Don Massenzio is the author of seven books. His Frank Rozzani Detective series is now made up of five books. His book, Blood Orange, is available as an audio book

Blog: https://donmassenzio.wordpress.com/

Q1 – What other authors are you friends with? and how do they help you become a better writer?

There are many authors that I have met over the past couple of years that I consider friends. They are very supportive by helping to spread the word about my work. They have also provided very useful advice along the way.

Here is a list of some of them along with their blogs:

Nicholas Rossis – https://nicholasrossis.wordpress.com/

Annette Rochelle Aben – https://annetterochelleaben.wordpress.com/

C.S. Boyack – https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/

John Howell – https://johnwhowell.com/

Charles Yallowitz – https://legendsofwindemere.com/

Marcia Meara – https://marciamearawrites.com/

Sue Vincent – https://scvincent.com/

Chris Graham – https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/

Yecheilyah Ysrayl – https://thepbsblog.com/

Dan Alatorre – https://danalatorre.com/

Anna Dobritt – https://amdobritt.blog/

And of course, my co-author on Frank Immersed, Kent Areceneaux

Q2 – When was that moment when you realized that language had power?

I think it was very early on in life. I have been an avid reader since I could first read. I read every book that I could get my hands on. Reading was an escape from a childhood that was short on friends and activities. Reading also got me through some awkward times in my teenage years when I spent a year in a full body cast.

Q3 – Who is your favourite author and why?

It’s tough to narrow it down. I like different authors for different reasons. If I had to select one, it would be Stephen King. His stories are captivating and well-developed and his writing advice is essential.

Q4 – If you didn’t write, what would you do?

I would have a much sadder life. I have other creative outlets as I’m a musician and love to edit video. I have a day job that intrudes on my writing life and I’m actually looking to replace that with a full-time writing career.

Q5 – What accomplishments do you want at the end of the year?

Some of them are well underway. My first audio books are out. I would like to complete a screenplay and submit it. I also have a book that I’m going to submit to the Kindle Scout program. I have one other book I’d like to publish as well as completing some short stories and starting on another, very ambitious book.

 

Back in Motion

I’m back. What a break I have had. It was my first long break from technology, writing and reading.

It was more of a time to reflect on the world around me and to enjoy my mother’s 60th in Hobart, Tasmania with my family and partner.

Now I’m back and time to get back into motion with my online engagement.