This interview is with the bubbly and effusive Munni101. She is one of my favorite Wattpadders; her comments on my stories are like little treats and her stories are always entertaining for me when I get over there to her page to check one out.
Munni101 has written Forbidden Enchantment and Artificial Intelligence; as well as some short stories, Annie, Crystal Heart, I'm Sorry, In The Arms Of My Angel and Time to Let Go. For those of you who enjoy poetry and randomness, there's Bits & Scraps & Random Stuff...
She is just as interesting and entertaining in this interview as she normally is so do please...
Enjoy!
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1. What are the advantages and disadvantages to growing up in a country far from your family's home country?
Well, the thing is, it's home for me, and I suppose Ireland will always be home in some respects. Pakistan is lovely for holidays and visiting cousins (and eating about 10 kilos of oranges in one go), but somehow I can't imagine living there! (Yet, anyway) Advantages I would definitely say is that you get to see a completely different society than your parents and what they experienced when they were children. You get both sides of the story, you know? A lot of people in the East, etc., make judgments on people in the West and vice versa, and it is quite something to stand up and say, ''No, you're wrong there'', because you know both arguments well. You can be a voice for the minority in the area and that is something not everyone can do. Another major advantage is that you are bilingual! And learning another language is quite easy that way. Plus, you can talk to your other Pakistani/Indian friends in Urdu if you want to say something private, and everyone looks at you like you've done something amazing! It's quite funny! Another funny thing is when you start teaching them little bits of the language, and fixing their pronunciations and such! Great entertainment for both parties on that account! There are disadvantages, however; the main one being that most of your family is a few odd thousand miles away. We do regularly visit, but it's already been about three years since we last went, which is sad! But my uncle, aunt and three cousins live half an hour away in Ireland, and I also have relatives in England, France, Switzerland, Sweden, and North America, so they are visited as well. (Although I have yet to go to the States and Switzerland! Those countries are definitely on my Where-To-Go-List!) I'm also not going to lie and say that everything is just peachy when you are born in another country. There is a feeling of alienation at times when cultural differences come into context, but that would apply to anyone in a similar situation, really. It becomes habit, in the end, but you should always have a group of close friends that you can talk to about anything in the whole wide world and beyond! Because they are the people who will stick by you for life. <3
2. What is the funniest thing that has happened to you so far this year?
Hey, this year has only begun! So you mean to ask me what is the funniest thing that had happened to me in 41 days? Haha, well, I do have an answer and it involves my very good friend who is known as oOShaShaOo on wattpad, and Sheepstah in real life. It all began at lunch one day when we (and another friend, Mario) were quietly eating lunch with solemn expressions on our faces. Anyway! I got bored so we started playing role play (accents included)! I was a *in posh voice* a very ladylike ballerina called Angelina, who had just gotten back from the hospital from a foot injury... dreadful, it was! And she was meeting this person... Rap Master G or something for the first time. *out of posh accent* Rap Master G was indeed played by our very own oOShaShaOo, whose first words to me were, "Yo wazzup mah nigga!?" to which we all laughed heftily. Yes, it was a very interesting lunch period, with Angelina the Ballerina urging Rap Master G to buy a belt for his too baggy jeans!
3. How do your family react to your writing and how does that make you feel?
How does my family react to my writing... well, the thing is, I have always always always been writing, so it's just part of everyday life at this point, so I wouldn't be able to answer that question! They would tell me to get off the laptop a fair bit of the time, but do I ever listen? ... Does this answer the question? :P
4. What are you planning to do with your life when you finish school?
The answer to this question I quite wonder myself! My career choices differ monthly, if I am being honest. It has gone from environmentalist, to marine biologist (although I am physically unable to swim), to archaeologist (I hate history), full time author, geologist, teacher, university lecturer, biomedic, and most recently, child psychologist! I think I shall hold onto this one, actually! For years when I was younger, my answer would always have been doctor, the reason being that I liked "squishy" things! Now that I am older and much more mature (ahem), I have realised that I do not particularly enjoy the concept of cutting people open! So FAIL on my account there.
5. What is your most favorite thing to eat in the entire world?
Food! You of all people had to talk to me about food! This one changes all the time, just like all of my other 'favourites'. At the moment, I would say chocolate cake, for the simple reason that we made one today in Home Ec! A scrumptious, rich, chocolate cake with a chocolate and cream filled ganache smeared through the middle, sandwiching two cakes together. Imagine the taste of the divine delicacy melting in your mouth, and the flavours intermingling into a delightful blend.... Yum! Although we did put about ½ kilo chocolate into it! :D
6. What is your favorite song?
Favourite song? This is like favourite food all over again! Right now Taylor Swift is floating my boat. Her new album, 'Speak Now' is amazing and it's nice to know she's steering away from all that country! Sometimes, some of her old stuff is way too country for my liking! Specific songs change day-to-day, and for today and this interview, I shall say "Written In The Stars" by Tinie Tempah! (although it has nothing to do with Speak Now) See how easy these things change?
7. When did you start writing and what made you decide to try?
The first time I really wrote for someone else was once I got my eye on Wattpad. Within three days of finding the website, I made my account (which is different to this one) and I was up and writing a new story by the end of the week. I was really anxious to get reads and comments to see what other people had to say about my writing since I had never gotten feedback as a writer of a book, but rather feedback with essays and specifically school related work. It was really interesting because people who were in the age group your story was aimed at would be the ones giving feedback, and personally, I find those words more valuable than a teacher's commentary. I had just turned fifteen at the time, (in fact I had made my account the day before my birthday!) and the story I was determined to finish was a fantasy, about a girl finding this completely new world, which she was the leader of. Summer had just begun, and my Junior Cert exams (O levels) had just finished, so it was a great way to have fun! Although it wasn't the most original story, knowing that people were out there to read my works gave me the drive to go and write the best as I possibly could, and I don't think any assignment from a teacher will ever have the same effect! I admit, that story was a fail in the end, and I deleted that account, but it's made me determined to never leave my writing again.
8. What was the first thing you wrote and where is that story now?
The first thing I wrote was in second class when I was seven years old. In England, it would be Year 3 and you may all make your equivalent that way! I honestly can't remember why I wrote it, it was to test our typing skills on the class computer, I think. It was called 'Emily's Brother', about a girl called Emily, who obviously had a brother, called Connor, and about their life! In this short story of about two hundred words, Emily becomes president, Connor goes to uni at age 13, and their parents die, which Emily was quite sad about. I still actually have the typed version at home right now, in a folder containing all of our summer reports etc. It even has an imprint of my foot in 1999! Oh what small feet I had...
9. What inspires you the most to write and do you base your characters on any real people?
My inspiration comes from my head really. I know that a lot of people are inspired by Wattpad and all the young writers on it, but I had always been writing, so whenever I am bored and my brain conjures this crazy idea, I write it down and see how far it goes, really. Wattpad has inspired me, however, to keep writing the same story, since I often get bored and ditch it for another! To date, for example, I may have around 15 tried and failed stories, and I only completed one, which was short enough. It was actually about Gaza! (Whoop!) Since I was so emotionally attached to that one, I had to see to it that I finished it, and viola! Much to all of my friends' astonishment, I did! My characters aren't based on any real people, as such. Again, I make them up as they go along and they develop on their own accord, and it feels like I am only watching and writing down a series of events. In saying that though, I still like my characters to have a personality of their own and do resemble human beings, as individuals, and not as people that I know of.... if that makes sense...
10. Which one of your stories is your favorite and why?
Favourite story would be Forbidden Enchantment, since it is the longest one I have written so far. The characters have come such a long way and it is lovely to see so many people reading it, becoming fans, leaving their comments; it really does make my day, Molly! The plotline is also so confusing and complex, and I still don't know half of it. I am sure I won't know more than half of it until I am sitting down and actually writing. For example, at the moment I have no clue why the characters even met! And I am meant to explain this to the readers after 68 pages! I don't worry about this though; as I say once pen comes to paper (or in this case fingers to keypad) it all unravels itself, some way or another! I just hope it makes sense in the end.
11. What is your writing style; carefully planned out or make it up as you go?
I can't answer this question either. Each story I write has a different writing style. For example, all of my short stories and Crystal Heart are written in the first person, with lots of emotion to really connect with the reader, since they are emotive pieces. In contrast to this Artificial Intelligence is written in both first and third person depending on viewpoint, with a very formal writing style that has danger element in it. And again, Forbidden Enchantment is told in a narrative way with lots of descriptions, as is the nature of the story! I enjoy writing in all these styles because it allows me, as a writer, to see what skills I have, and what I lack. Writing in the same style bores me after a while, which is why sometimes a chapter of a story may be written in another style that belongs to a different story, if you get me? That just ends up fairly messed up, if I'm honest! I am working on it though! I now only write another chapter of a story if I am in the mood for that specific style of writing. I think it keeps my writing more organised, and it's more fun as well, and more enjoyable to read, too!
12. Do you prefer to write novels or short stories and why?
I've never really thought about it, actually (<- as the answers to most other questions). Short stories are so fun to write when you have a spare moment in the evening, or when you have a specific thought in mind, because they do express your feelings on many matters, whether you like it or not. I view short stories as little lessons and messages, whereas novels are more handbooks, if you follow the same idea. Novels are quite fun because you get to express your views on a lot of things, because you are essentially the main character of your book, whether you realise it or not. Your personality and viewpoints are definitely going to show through the course of your writing, mainly through the experience of your characters. So in different circumstances, I would have different answers. I am a very choosy person!
13. What is the best book you've ever read and what did you like about it?
Isn't this like favourite all over again? Well, let me think. Best book I have read to date (which I can remember) is probably Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol". In a word, it is epic and makes you think about things you would have never dreamed of thinking before! It's an utterly mad idea and I love it, just because it is something so new, yet it is ancient, and so full of mystique that you are gripped until the end! I read that 600 pages while in a weekend away in Paris! I bought it at the airport and was glued to it! (But I didn't bring it with me sightseeing, of course. I do have that wee bit of self-control. Wee.)
14. What is the best online story you've ever read and what made it so good?
Online story? (aka Wattpad?) Pah, this is a hard one. I would recommend "Dancing In The Rain," written by Addicted-Writer-101 (which can be found in my library!) since it is amazing, but it's still very short as well. There hasn't been a Wattpad story to date that I would jump up and down for because the author uploaded another chapter, but I think I may find one in the future. There has only really been one book that has made me cry, and that was "The Last Song" by Nicholas Sparks. I was literally bawling my eyes out at like 2am! It was so sad! Wattpad stories in general are good, but a lot of the writers are first timers, and they have yet to beat the crying action of Sparks!
15. What is your favorite thing about Wattpad?
My favourite thing about Wattpad is that there is such a thing as Wattpad! It is simply an amazing website, whose name should be recognised by MS Word and beyond! Millions of writers, young and old are able to connect together and communicate with each other, post their stories, poems, short stories, whatever! The opportunity to get through to thousands who share the same passion for writing as you do is something that definitely amazes me. LONG LIVE WATTPAD AND ITS AWESOMENESS <333
16. What is the best advice you have ever received about writing?
The thing is, I am really shy (<- yes, amazes me to) when it comes to showing others my work in person. So many people I know don't know that I am a writer at all! Out of my family, I only let my mother read my work! Once my Dad tried to and I shooed him away! So in that respect, I can't say I have gotten advice. Wattpad, on the other count is wonderful for encouragement, and urges you to go on with your stories that may otherwise be on your computer, waiting to be deleted! One thing I would absolutely love is that one day a real, famous published author would come along and give me a critique on my writing. That would be a dream come true, really. I can say however, that one of the most encouraging things I have read is that if you want to write a cliché, write a cliché, because in a few years' time, a cliché will be referred to that which was considered original today. Another really interesting quote I read was about real writers, and how you can say anything to them, but it won't stop them writing. I'd like to think that I am one of them.