Hello! Welcome to the Q&A. Before we get started I wanted to mention a couple of things.

First of all, there were lots and lots of duplicate questions. Secondly, the website I used for the survey is a bit glitchy on my end, so I couldn't see a few of the responses. I'm so sorry if your question didn't get answered because of it! Lastly, I do want to say right now that I did see all the wonderful notes that you guys left praising my work. I'm really happy that you guys enjoy it!

Anyway, onto the Q&A!

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Questions for the Author!

Q: When did you start to get into writing? Is there any tips you wish you'd received as a beginner?

A: I've been a huge fan of writing stories pretty much ever since I could, but I published my first book here on Wattpad during the summer of 2020.

As a beginner, I really wish someone had told me that it's easier (for me, at least) to plan out what I want to write first before trying to let every little piece fall together on its own. It doesn't always happen like that, and when it doesn't, I start to hate what I write and it's the worst feeling.

Now, this in no way applies to everybody. Everyone has their own way of doing things, and that's perfectly okay! Personally, planning out books takes a long time for me. It's very much a process, and it's not for everyone, but it's something I wish someone had told me to start doing sooner.

Q: Did you expect APBAON to get as much attention as it's getting right now?

A: Absolutely not. It has genuinely blown my mind how much it's gotten across the place, both here and on Ao3. I was surprised back in March when I broke 200 reads, and I'm still surprised now that I've broken 18k. It's absolutely insane, and I'm so happy that there are so many people enjoying my work.

Q: Will Scotts past ever be revealed?

A: Yes! I've finished planning out Scott's POV of APBAON, which will be posted as the second book of the series! :D

Q: Why is Joey Scott's cousin?

A: To put it simply, I'm not really sure. I sort of replaced Xornoth with Lauren in this AU [not really sure if it's mentioned before that Lauren is Scott's sister], and I thought that the dynamic between Scott and Joey would be interesting if they were cousins. Sort of like how Pearl is Scott's second cousin.

Q: How are you doing? And how did you come up with the inspiration for this fic (eg drama club)?

A: I'm doing decently well! I've definitely seen better days as I'm writing this, but I'm managing to hang on quite well. :D /pos

And I'm not 100%, but I believe it was when I lived back in the States and I watched the Romeo + Juliet movie with my English class [the one with Leonardo DiCaprio, love that guy]. I remember writing out a scene for later in the book in my notes app and then scrapping it once I started actually writing and planning the whole thing.

Fun Fact: Initially, I had an entirely different plot for this story. There are only a few things I kept as major plot points, like Zach's and Scott's big fight when Zach exposed Scott to Jimmy and when Grian got kicked out by his mum - and both of those were even supposed to happen entirely differently!

Q: What was your inspiration for Zach?

A: If I'm going to be 100% honest, [and this is probably going to sound really bad], the inspiration for him was an old ex of mine. His entire appearance and personality is based off a guy I dated back when I lived in the States. [And before anyone starts panicking, yes, he was an absolute ass, but I'm fine, I promise, loves]

Q: What's your favourite book that you've written/are writing?

A: A Cup of Coffee to Ease the Pain, for sure! It's on a semi-hiatus at the moment, but I genuinely love how it's turned out so far. The writing is quite different than how I've written for APBAON, or Stuck With You, or my new Life Series oneshots, but I really like it! Re-reading it feels like, "Woah, I wrote that? That sounds really cool!" and it's the best feeling to actually think my work is good. And it's an even better feeling to know that other people like it as well!

Q: What story and/or character you've written is your favourite or according to you the best written?

A: Story-wise, I've answered this in the above question, but my favourite character is probably Joel. I love how his and Grian's dynamic has turned out and the kind of vibe his character in this AU gives off. But, I think that the character I've written best has got to be Scar. He hasn't had much attention yet in the series, but I like how his few bits of dialog has turned out so far.

Q: What is your long term goal for this series?

A: To be honest, I never really had a huge goal for any of this. I never expected APBAON to be as popular as it is, and I never expected to turn this into a series. I really just want to share my writing with you guys is all. Though, I would say a goal of mine would probably be to write five books in this series. I'm not sure if I'll be able to, but I'll certainly try!

Q: Who's your fave youtuber/streamer/content creator?

A: That's a tough one. I enjoy everyone from Empires, 3rd Life, and Hermitcraft, but my favorite at the moment is definitely fWhip. I love his sense of humor, his narration during videos, and his content overall. I like to have his streams on in the background whenever I'm working, same with Jimmy's and Joel's streams!

Q: Is Xornoth still Scott's brother in this fanfic? And if so will we ever see Xornoth?

A: Nope! Xornoth doesn't exist in this AU.

Q: How did you get the motivation to write such a long book?

A: It's all just hyperfixation, really. I planned the whole thing out within about three hours, and within the first day of writing the actual book, I wrote about ten chapters all at once and I finished Act XXX a while ago, back in May. Since then, I haven't had much time, motivation, or general ability to write much. I've honestly had more inspiration for writing the second and third books than I have for this one.

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Questions for the Characters!
[All answers from the characters take place in this exact point in time, between Acts XXXI and XXXII]

Q: Who initially noticed each other first between Scott and Jimmy?

A: Jimmy always admired Scott from afar since middle school. It wasn't until Jimmy joined drama club that Scott even knew Jimmy existed.

Q: Jimmy and Lizzie, how are you not dead you're surrounded by messed up people omg /lh

A:
"I don't know. Everyone always makes jokes about how they're surprised I haven't stuck a fork in a toaster by accident." -Jimmy
"I've dealt with Joel's emo phase, I can handle anything." -Lizzie

Q: [For Fwhip] What was going through your mind around the time when they didn't spend too much time with you?

A:
"It's gotten pretty lonely, not gonna lie. The only other people I really hung out with besides them were Gem and Sausage, and even Gem was pretty upset at me after she heard what I said to Grian. She almost got our parents to ground me by exaggerating how much of a jerk I was. It gave me a lot of time to think, though, and I really want to apologize to him." -Fwhip

Q: [For Pearl] Anything she does? How does she really spend her time?

A:
"I do a few things other than drama club and working at the diner! I like to volunteer at the petting zoo to hand out balloons to the kiddos and I like to go hunting with my dad during the winter. I never kill any deer, though, because that's Scott's favorite animal." -Pearl

Q: [For Mumbo] Are you really that oblivious?

A:
"Oblivious? To what? Is there something on my shirt?" -Mumbo

Q: [For Jimmy] Did you actually have a fever?

A:
"No, but I did genuinely feel sick that morning. Though, fighting with Scott made me feel worse." -Jimmy

Q: [For Lizzie] Who's the most problematic in the friend group?

A:
"Definitely Joel. Whether he wants to admit it or not, Father isn't far off when he calls him a troublemaker. Before having to juggle high school, a job, and med school, he caused all sorts of trouble. He's become a bit more responsible since then, but he's the menace of the bunch of us. Especially with Grian." -Lizzie

Q: [For Scott] Do you still love Zach?

A:
"That feels like a loaded question... How I feel about Zach is complicated. He means a lot to me. He was there for me when my father kicked me out of the house, and he's done a lot for me whether he turned out to he a jerk or not. I don't think I could describe how I feel about him as love exactly, but it's probably somewhere close. Right now, though, I think I'd much rather be with him than Jimmy."
-Scott

Q: [For Lizzie] When did you first meet Joel? Was it love at first sight?

A:
"I met Joel in grade school, the year Jimmy started school. I wouldn't call it love at first sight, though, because he would bully me on the playground during recess. He stopped when I had told a teacher that he was being mean to me and the teacher forced us to befriend each other. He asked me out to the Valentine's dance in middle school, and ever since then we'd been a happy couple."
-Lizzie

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That concludes the Q&A! So sorry for the long wait, so much has happened in my personal life this past month and it's been absolutely insane to deal with.

Also, also!! I've posted the rules and beginning info to 'So, What'll It Be?'! It's an audience-interactive story, where you guys get to make decisions for the characters. Go check it out! /nf