Drumsticks Member

MCAlexander:

Three things you love besides writing/reading:

1) Animals, particularly dogs and horses

2) Long drive trips -- In a few years, my husband and I are planning to sell everything, quit our jobs, and explore the Americas.

3) "Woo" -- I adore the metaphysical from Tarot to hoodoo to ghosts.

Three things you hate:

1) Cruelty to animals and people. I just don't understand causing someone else pain.

2) Bigotry. Race, sex, sexual preference, religion, weight, nationality... just get over it. We're PEOPLE.

3) Bell pepper and cilantro. Nasty.

Why do you write?

Honestly, I've been doing it for so long that it's just part of my self image. If I didn't write, I wouldn't know who I was anymore.

Out of all of your stories, which one is your favorite?

Of the stories on Wattpad, "Redemption" is my favorite. I'm working on a novel called Doubting River that will likely be my best ever.

How do you create your characters?

As I mull over a premise, the major characters begin to form. The first task is to give them a general description -- name, age, role in the story, high-level back story. As the story comes together, I go deeper. I create backstories to really get to know them, and then I determine what they need and want in the context of the story.

Out of your characters, which one are you the most like?

Honestly, none of them. There's a professional animal trainer in Doubting River that shares a mentor with me, but our personalities are nothing alike. I'm way too normal and boring and nice to be a good fictional character.

What do you do when you have writer's block?

Depends on whether I have a deadline. If I have a deadline, I write through it. Write crap and keep going. Fix it later (and inevitably find out that "crap" isn't so bad). If I don't have a deadline, I generally just putz around with another project.

How do you plan out your stories?

Oh God. I'm a plotter to the EXTREME. I wrote screenplays before I tried my hand at prose fiction, and that taught me to plan ahead and work efficiently. Initially there's a lot of mulling and brainstorming and note taking. As the basic story and characters begin to come into focus, I answer key questions about the conflict and the stakes, and then I delve into character goals and needs. Plot details emerge from that.