Twenty Things About Me

Twenty Random Things about Me & My Writing

1. A few years ago, I had an idea for a story about a girl moving into a new town. I couldn't decide whether I wanted the girl to be good or a trouble maker so I worked on both versions. That's how The Green Girl and Here We Go Again were created.

2. Speaking of moving – it's a common theme with me. Most of my books start with someone moving into a new town/city/village or going back to a town they use to live in.

3. I often make sure the meaning of the name I pick for my hero have something to do with their personality. Actually, interesting names help me create some of the traits for the characters. When I was looking for names for The Green Girl heroes, I liked so many flower names that I came up with the Green family tradition to have the girls named after plants, have them love flowers and to be obsessed with tea.

4. Speaking of tea-lovers – I am one. I often give my characters traits that I possess, be it a virtue, a downside or a quirk. If you've read "Twenty Random Things about Me", you'll know Alice, Alex and I share some physical traits. I also share some similarities with my male characters, but not physical ones. Hmm... I wonder how I'd look like a boy. Ok, it's decided: I'm making a character who is based on me but is a guy.

5. Cameos and Easter eggs. I love them. I use them. I love it when people comment and tell me they've figured out I've used them. The first time I gave a character from one of my books a minor role in another book was in The Foreigner – a chapter of The Green Girl, in which Alex from Here We Go Again showed up and had a conversation with Keegan. Here are some other examples:

In one chapter of Here We Go Again, Tyson speaks with Raiden who briefly tells him about his childhood friends Vallery and Nathaniel. Yes, the same Val and Nat who are main characters in Hunt Me Down.

In the Here We Go Again Epilogue, we are introduced to Galya – a character from Frost on the Green and Angel talks about an artist who is called Caden Kavanagh – that's Cade from The Green Girl and Frost on the Green.

Devon from Here We Go Again and Hunter from Hunt Me Down have minor roles in two chapters of Frost on the Green.

These stories are not connected, except for The Green Girl and its sequel Frost on the Green. I just like using my current story to give you a glimpse of characters I plan to later have as main or give an important role in another book.

6. My wattpad app was acting out: when I was checking my profile, it showed that I had no stories. That prompted me to create reading lists with only my books in them; that way you can search for my work there. I advise everyone who writes to do that.

7. I sometimes give sneak peeks before I post a chapter. I usually do that on facebook or tumblr but sometimes I tweet about it.

8. I have over thirty story ideas that I am yet to write. You can see the summaries of some of them in my book Upcoming Projects.

9. I reply to comments in my books faster than to PM-s.

10. Often those comments inspire me to write a scene or even a whole chapter, in which case I dedicate the chapter to whomever inspired me.

11. I'm planning a fantasy book – A Witch's Story: Abruptly Awakened (you can read the summary in Upcoming Projects), and I'm coming up with new mythology for it. Two of the creatures I introduce in it are creatures I've dreamt about.

12. I once saw a picture of a mermaid and came up with a plot for a story that has nothing to do with mermaids, except that some of the characters are in an all-girls band, called "The Mermaids".  Glancing at my dreamcatcher made me come up with a horror story. Listening to Viva Las Vegas, made me create a chapter with the main characters in Las Vegas (I'm including it in Hunt Me Down). Bottom line: inspiration comes from everywhere.

13. If I'm inspired, I'd write even into the wee hours of the morning. I once spend so much time working on a story that when I went to wash my teeth before going to bed I ran into my father. It was about 6 a.m. and he was getting ready for work; he thought I'd gotten up early for once.

14. Some time ago I realized I have a thing for Irish names. I'd like a name, check its origin and what do you know? It would turn out to be Irish! That's why some characters in The Green Girl/Frost on the Green have Irish names even though the story is not set in Ireland.

15. I have no idea where The Green Girl or Frost on the Green are set. Could be either in the US or England. Same goes for Here We Go Again although that's probably in America since when Devon visited, Tyson commented on his British accent.

16. I like to write a chapter and edit it on the next day. When the material is not fresh in my mind, I'm less likely to miss an error simply because I expect to have written something right. This applied mostly for typos.

17. Sometimes, I lie in bed for hours building up plots or making character profiles. It's pretty annoying when I'm supposed to get up early and trying to catch some sleep.

18. Spin-offs. I love my characters and I have a hard time saying goodbye to them. That's why I plan on writing spin-offs for my full-length books. These spin-offs are going to be short stories and one-shots that give us a glimpse of a character's past or future or writing scenes I originally intended to include in the full-length book, but did not.

19. I made my tumblr account to look for blogs that will help me improve my writing. I reblog posts from them and I'm already applying those tips.

20. I love it when I see that my chapter/story has gotten a lot of reads and votes in the space of a few days but what I enjoy even more is when people leave comments. But in whatever way you decide to support me – thank you! Thank you so much for giving me a chance! You wattpaders can put a smile on my face during dull and unpleasant days and I truly appreciate your support. I hope I'll be able to return the gesture by making you smile with my books.

If you'd like to know more about me and get in touch, add me as a friend on facebook or follow me on tumblr or twitter. The links to those sites are on my wattpad profile page and in the next chapter.