Thursday, September 29, 2011

Aspiring Author Thursday: Introducing, Ru!

I'm excited to have, Ru with me today. She is so awesome and funny. Her blog is hilarious. Check it out, here.



When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?

I think I've always had the idea of being a writer in the back of my mind. When I was little, I would draw picture books and staple them together. In sixth grade, I started writing short stories on my parents' brand spankin' new Gateway as I taught myself to type. (It took me nearly a year to figure out the SHIFT key was a better option than hitting CAPS LOCK every time I wanted to start a new sentence.)

LOL! I totally did the CAPS LOCK thing too. ;)
Do you have a writing schedule, or do you just sit down whenever you get a spare moment?

I generally sit down whenever I get a spare moment. This is one reason I miss college - it was so easy to just sit in the living room in my sorority house and type for a few hours. This being a grown up is a fool's game.

I hear ya. :P
Could you tell us a little about yourself? Random facts? Hidden talents?

Random fact: I have a serious fear of getting into bad situations while wearing inappropriate footwear. When I cross the road in flip flops or heels, I'm way more afraid of getting hit by a car than when I'm wearing sneakers. Sometimes I'll leave the house and pause by my car to decide whether that day feels like a day I might get chased (by what? zombies, I don't know) and then I'll go back inside and change into flats.

Oh, my heck! That is hilarious! You never know when you'll be chased by zombies. :)

If you were stranded on a desert island, what is one thing you couldn't live without? (Besides your family and a laptop of course.)

I don't know, that one's tough. I figure I'd bring a bikini and just make the best of the situation.

Me and bikinis aren't friends. I'm sure you'll rock yours though! ;)

What is one book you could read over and over and over?

Oh my gosh, I feel like I've gushed about The Stand about a thousand times online, but it's just true. I read it every summer. There are so many different characters, so many different subplots--I really do notice different things and remain engaged every single time.

Yet another one to add to my TBR pile. Sounds awesome!

What book are you dying to read this year?

Dang, so many. Well, for starters, EVERNEATH, by Brodi Ashton; A DANCE WITH DRAGONS by George RR Martin (yes, I know it's already out, but I haven't gotten to it on my list yet); STRANGE FATE by LJ Smith (I've actually been waiting on that one since 8th grade ... fingers crossed it comes out someday); and ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS by Stephanie Perkins (yes, I know, I'm super behind!).

Yay for Everneath! That seriously looks so good. I've gushed about that gorgeous cover many times. Never heard of Strange Fate, but Anna and the French Kiss is excellent. And I've heard I'm missing out on A Dance with Dragons. Gotta add those to the pile too. :)

What genre do you write and why?

I have written chick lit, commercial adult fiction and contemporary young adult. There's no real rhyme or reason, since I love to read all sorts of books. Mostly, I just want to make people laugh, and some genres make that easier than others. I've tried the paranormal romance thing, I've tried to be literary and serious -- it just never flows for me as well as writing about people who are spunky and sarcastic and generally not all that grim.

I agree. Gotta love sarcasm. And I do. :)

Do you have any writing rituals? Music, silence, eating, etc.

Diet Coke is really my only constant. Sometimes I want music, sometimes I want the TV on in the background, sometimes I want total silence. My best writing has usually happened late at night, and I'm trying to change that habit so I can start getting more done in the mornings before work.

I get so much more done in the mornings now. And I'm NOT a morning person. Like, at all. My hubby gets scared of me in the morning. He he. Kidding. Sort of...
Where do you come up with your ideas? Dreams, while driving, etc?

I love thinking about writing when I'm driving, but I still remember when I got my best idea thus far--sitting in a hot tub. I clearly need to invest in a hot tub of my own.

A hot tub would be awesome. Someday...

Any advice for other aspiring authors?

Take advantage of any time you have to write now, because you never know when your life is going to get out of control and that time is going to evaporate. I really wish I would have written more in school, because it only got harder to find the time after that. (But to be fair to the former me ... Greek Philanthropy Week and the law school Halloween Party weren't going to plan themselves!)

LOL! Great advice! :)
Random Writing Question: Who would your MC rather fight? Darth Vader, or Voldemort?

Voldemort, for sure. I hope no one hates me for this, but I really do not get Darth Vader as a character, probably because of Episode I - III. Sure, he can force choke people and he murdered a whole planet, but I just don't find him scary. Worse, I don't find him all that conflicted. Voldemort, I think, scares the crap out of everyone, and the fact that he has all these exploitable weaknesses makes him interesting. Darth Vader killed a bunch of Jedi babies just so he could hold his girl like that one time by the lake on Naboo? I'm baffled. I think The Situation from Jersey Shore makes a more credible bad guy. (Oh snap, I went there.)

Ha ha ha! Oh, dear. The Situation. :P And I'd totally pick Voldemort as well. ;) Thanks for being here today, Ru! :) Oh, and I'm being interviewed over at Reece Hanzon's blog today! Go check it out, here! :)

21 comments:

Angela Cothran said...

Great interview Chantele (I love your questions :) So fun to get to know Ru better. I love her blog! I sure hope she never gets stuck in a zombie apocalypse in flip flops :)

Abby Fowers said...

This is great. I have to laugh about her fear of wearing the wrong footwear in bad situations. lol. I am now following her blog. So glad you shared.

J.R. Johansson said...

Haha... great interview. Totally agree about Darth Vader and The Situation, btw. Ru seems adorable. :) Thanks for letting her say hi!

Liz Reinhardt said...

Great interview, Ru! I totally wrote my first novel during senior year of college and kicked myself later on for not writing more. I am also trying to get into the early morning groove...I'm waaay more of a night owl! Can't wait to see your books out there for all of us to read!

Jennie Bennett said...

That was a fun interview! I'm all for snarky sarcastic books, so write away! :)

Patty said...

Well done, Ru. You didn't even spill your coffee.

Emily R. King said...

I'm with you on the Diet Coke (is there any other soda?) and the footwear. I got stuck in inappropriate footwear all day yesterday and it was awful. I felt as though everyone was staring at my feet. I'm totally paranoid.
Great interview, Ru and Chantele. Love ya, girls!

Christine Rains said...

Great interview! Thank you for the laugh. I'm another one that did the CAPS LOCK thing. :)

Jenny S. Morris said...

Lots of laughs. Thanks for letting us get to know Ru better.

Angela Brown said...

This was a great interview. Cheers to you both, Ru and Chantele.

And Ru, you are SOOO right, those events needed someone with the power to pull them off.

David P. King said...

In a word, Ru Rocks!

Thanks for interviewing her. She's an absolute riot. If we're all at the same convention sometime, let me know. We have to share a table! :)

Jolene Perry said...

RU's blog is FREAKING HILARIOUS!!

And I LOVE The Stand. Read it a few times.

Sarah Tokeley said...

Wait? The shift key makes capitals? :-)
I'm totally with Ru on the diet coke thing!

J said...

I've been hearing a lot of good things about Ru lately...and now, I must hop over to her blog! Great interview, Chantele! :D

Ms Saba (aka Teacher007.5) said...

Nice to meet you Ru!

ali cross said...

I totally left my comment on the wrong blog! Oops! (But your costume was pretty wicked Chantele!)

So I wanted to say, yay for meeting Ru! And that her footwear issues was flat out hillarious. :)

ali cross said...

Um, am I being completely blind? Does Ru have a blog?

Peggy Eddleman said...

Hahahaha! I'm still dying laughing at the inappropriate footwear phobia. SO funny!

Jessie Humphries said...

How come I dont know this Ru? I must change that:)

Ru said...

Thanks for interviewing me, Chantele! It was super fun. Thanks for all the comments, you guys.

Anonymous said...

AHAHAHA! The Situation is the ultimate bad guy!