365 Interviews

Interview 111: TypicallyMe16

1. Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
My name is Sandra I'm 19 years old and live in Canada. Some of my hobbies include writing, cooking, and baking. I've been writing since I was about 13 years old. I have an addiction to shopping and starbucks. And I love telling stories to people… seriously I'm going to be one of those people who make their grandkids sit for hours as I tell them the same stories every time I see them.

2. What inspired you to write?
My friend Luisa actually introduced me to story writing when we were younger and I really liked the idea of it. It was an escape from reality and the perfect way to let out your feelings and vent to anyone.

3. Do you have a specific writing style?
I don't think I have a specific writing style, I just kind of write and hope it sounds good. I like to keep things as close to reality as it can get so the readers can relate to the characters.

4. How did you come up with the titles?
I try to find a title that goes well with the story, since I began writing this story 6 years ago I don't really remember exactly how I come up with it; I think I saw a TV show with a similar title and made it my own. Nothing was really set in stone, I kind of just tried it out and I ended up keeping the title the way it was; I can't imagine naming it something else.

5. Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
I do have a hidden message in my story that I want readers to grasp. It's one of the major plots so I don't want to give anything away too soon.

6. How much of the book is realistic?
I would like to say half the book is realistic because I do use real life events that have either happened to me or people I know, but the other half is fiction, I like to exaggerate things for entertainment purposes.

7. Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
Yes both, mainly other peoples lives based on stories they have told me and some of the experiences are from my own personal life. It’s basically my way to vent but I do add things that haven't happened to me in my story to make it interesting.

8. What books have most influenced your life most?
I would probably have to say "The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton because that is the first novel I read that I actually enjoyed. Also S.E. Hinton wrote that book at a young age and that in itself was very inspiring for me because I was really young when I started writing. I mentioned a story I worked on when I was younger with Luisa, it will probably never see the light of day but it was very similar to The Outsiders because we were both obsessed with that book and still are.

9. What book are you reading now?
Right now I am reading "Go ask Alice" and "Bad Girls Don't Die”.

10. Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?
I don't read many books in general, but on Wattpad I'd have to say my makeandoffer. Her stories are amazing and really caught my attention.

11. What are your current projects?
I am working on both "One Big Unhappy Family" on my account and "She's The Boss" you can read that on my shared account TypicalxImagination with my best friend Luisa.

12. Do you see writing as a career?
It's funny because when I started writing it was just a hobby, now I write stories like its my job and it is the best job ever. So yes I do hope to see writing as a career.

13. Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
I don't really find anything really challenging about my story because I find it interesting for me to write. The most challenging thing about it is getting writers block, so I just take a step back and take a small break so I can get back on track with writing.

14. Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?
Like I've said before I don't read a lot of books so from the few that I have read, my favourite author would have to be Sara Shepard. She wrote the Pretty Little Liars books. What strikes me about her work is that she has so many series of books out and a few of them have turned into TV show's. Even though the only books I have read from her are the Pretty Little Liars series I find it amazing how she was able to write such an incredible story that is interesting to read and how she was able to keep track of all the characters in the story without leaving any of them out.

15. Who designed the covers?
Luisa has designed all my covers and she designs covers for other writers on Wattpad, so if you are in the need of a book cover or banner message her, her username is ClassicImaginaton, she's awesome.

16. What was the easiest part of writing your book?
The easiest part of writing my book is creating a story that I have in interest in and don't get bored of. I also find it easy to come up with different ideas for the story because it's pretty much always on my mind.

17. What was the hardest part of writing your book?
I would have to say the hardest part of writing my book is as the chapters go on, I get critical of my work and always want to go back to the beginning and change everything. It's also hard because I'm always coming up with new ideas so I have to find a way to connect them to the story and hope that it makes sense.

18.Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?
I've learned to never give up on myself, even when times are bad, all you gotta do is pick yourself up because you are the only one that can help yourself. No one can force you to something, it's all up to you.

19.Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thank you so much for all of your support, its an amazing feeling to know people actually enjoy what you write. So thank you for everything :)

20. Do you have any advice for other writers?
Do research for your story and take your time there is no rush, make it relatable. If people give you hate on your story don't take it to heart. If one person doesn't like your story there will be many more that will so don't give up on your dreams.