Hello everyone :)
Welcome back to Interview With The Author!! You probably know our next author from her joint fic "In the Arms of a Stranger" and from her numerous short stories. That's right, you're here to find out more about our lovely writer Schmooie730!!
I'm sure you'll enjoy reading this interview as much as I did while holding it, so... here it comes....


Personal

Tell us a little bit about yourself?

I am 20 years old and going to college to do Early Childhood Education/Special Ed. I absolutely LOVE working with babies and toddlers, and I work in a daycare now. I brag about them all the time! hehe. I have eclectic tastes in just about everything; clothes, music, movies, guys My style is always changing. Also? I have blue streaks in my hair at the moment, lol.

When and why did you decide to start writing fan fics? Did you have any sort of experience in writing before this?

Oh man. I think I wrote my first fan fic when I was in 7th grade. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I wrote Hanson and *NSync fics. OH yeah. Then I didn’t write for a very long time, until LOTR: ROTK came out. Now I’m constantly writing!

Which stories have you written so far?

Right now I’m co-authoring “In The Arms of a Stranger” with Bee_Sting77. I also write a BUNCH of short stories since I can never seem to finish a chapter fic!

What do you think of joint fics?

I love them! It’s really nice because you have someone to bounce ideas off of who knows where you want the story to go, and also knows your character really well.

What mostly inspires you?

Wow, just about anything! It can be something that happened to me, a song, a picture, a pre-existing plot line just molded to fit different characters…I get inspiration from so many different places.

What authors do you admire?

(Real life and on this site) On the site, I love Blondie, Ambrosia, and so many others! I’m constantly reading stories and picking up on new ones. It’s great! In real life I really like Nicholas Sparks and Diana Gabaldon.


Writing

How would you describe your own style of writing?

Oh boy….lol. I don’t really have a style. I usually come up with an idea and then type it out, proof it, and edit right in Word. When I write an idea with pen and paper, it takes me so long to figure out what I want to say, so by typing it up, I’m able to correct things quickly and easily.

To you, What are the bad sides of writing?

Trying to keep your characters stable. There are times when I write people very out of character and it’s difficult to figure out what went wrong and where. It also takes a lot of time, and going to school probably doesn’t help, hehe.

How big of a place does writing have in your life?

Pretty big. I write to get stuff out and I LOVE writing stories for my friends. If they have an idea, or are having a bad day, I try to crank out something for them, even if it’s really short.

Other than writing, do you have any artistic sides?

I used to be in choir for a VERY long time. I don’t sing in a choir anymore, but I still sing.

How does your writing make you feel? How important is it to you?

Writing can make me feel either really good or really bad. If I like what I write (which is rare) I’ll feel really great about myself. If I don’t like what I have, or it didn’t come out right, I can start beating myself up over it. Writing is important in the sense that if other people like it and it makes them happy to read it, then I’ve done my job.

Have you ever suffered from a writersblock and if so how do you deal with it?

NUMEROUS times! hehe If I have a writer’s block, I usually just let the story sit for a while and work on something else, randomly going back and re-reading what I have and trying to add something to it, even if it’s really small. Also, listening to songs that evoke the same feelings of the characters, or reading other stories that I love and have made me feel something helps.

What different genres, if any, would you like to attempt writing? What do you feel would challenge you the most?

Oh man, I’d love to write humor. I’m so bad at comedy. I can do drama decently, and fluff is so much fun for me, and even the smut but I can’t write funny scenes if my life depended on it!

Do you consider yourself an organized writer (make outlines and notes) or do you have a more whimsical, creative approach?

Not at all. I just type and type without ever really having a plan for my characters. Usually I’ll know how I want it to start, and a possible ending, but there have been times when I’ve written different endings than I planned.

The Story

Do your characters set where the story is heading, or do you find characters that match the storyline you already have in your head?

Oh man…it can be a bit of both at times. Most of my ideas come from weird dreams I have and for male characters I usually use the guy I’m crushing on at the moment My female characters all are usually made to fit to the story line.

Are the characters you create inspired by people you already know or are they just a creation of your mind? Basically, what shapes them?

It’s usually a mix of both. When writing for my friends, I use their alter egos, and a lot of times I’ll just use myself as the main character, changing a few things like background and looks and whatnot. It all kind of depends, lol. I’m a very eclectic writer.

Where do you mostly get your story ideas, do they just come to you or do you have a more complicated way of finding them?

Most of my ideas just randomly come to me. I’ve written a few based off of dreams I’ve had and I’ve also done a few where I came up with a plot line with a friend and fleshed it out before writing.

What is your idea of the perfect story? What do you dislike reading most in a story?

A story that not only has a mix of everything, but can also evoke certain feelings and emotions from me. I love stories that can make me cry or laugh out loud. Those are the best kinds.

When you read something, what makes you tell whether it's good or not?

Grammar. If the grammar (punctuation, capitalization) isn’t good, I’ll stop reading. Also, if the characters are very unbelievable. And it’s fairly easy to tell that within the first few chapters of a story.

What makes you stop writing a story?

When I can’t figure out where to go next. Or if I have no inspiration to write it anymore. Sometimes it ends up forgotten, other times I’ll end up going back to it.

Is there anything you would like to share with us, you think is important/ funny/ handy to know? LOL probably not. I’m not an interesting person AT ALL. hehe I do have a fic journal though (I’m totally going to self pimp). It’s open for all to see, but I’d love for people to friend and leave comments! It’s all different fandoms, mainly LOTR boys, Gerard Butler, and Simple Plan. www.livejournal.com/users/weight_of_wings =D

Great interview. I love Steph to bits.

:heartbeat: Pat

Yayy! I'm so glad you got an interveiw, my dear! I think you are such an awesome author, and I enjoy your joint fic with Beesting77 to bits! Speaking of which...cough cough...isn't it time for an update on that? ;-)

And, missy, I think you are a very interesting person! No more doubting yourself. You are very talented and such a sweetheart, too. :hug:

I also wanted to say I really do enjoy all your shorties, I actually wouldn't mind some more with Gerard Butler. :tsk:

And, thanks for the shout-out!

*hugs like crazy*

Nice interview! I'm glad I had the chance to know you better! :yay: [COLOR=red]

Great interview ^_^
Steph, don't beat your comedy up! I think your good at writing funny/humorous scenes! I know there were funny moments in your chapter in your joint-fic!! Which I'm kind of ashamed to admit I've fallen behind in, I'm sorry!! *hides* I really want to catch up and get back into it 'cause it's such an awesome story, I'll definitely catch up as soon as possible!!
I also totally agree with the thing about grammar. I mean, mine's probably terrible because my school system doesn't find it necessary to teach it to us in English, but I'm exactly the same. If a story has crap grammar I just can't read it, or I don't enjoy it as much.

Anyway, I really loved the interview!! Keep writing Steph!! ... although I don't think you're in any danger of stopping ^_^

Yay for Steph! I'm so excited to see that you got an IWTA! You so deserve it, with all those shorties you are churning out!

Awwww, girl, don't beat knock your comedy. Now I know that I have fallen behind, like way behind in "In The Arms of a Stranger" but I am pretty sure that I did read some damn funny stuff in there and it was written by you. But you are correct on one thing...you are excellent with the fluff and I love it to bits and pieces!

Keep on writing, because sooner or later, I will read them all (that is my pledge to you...scouts honor).

P.S. Thanks for the shout out. You are far, far too kind. :love: