What is your favorite snack and/or drink when writing?
Arizona Green Tea, need that caffeine kick! My handwriting is bad enough without crumbs and multitasking, so, no snacks!
What do you listen to when writing?
It depends on my mood, but usually I just put my Spotify library on random and let it roll. I like that unpredictability.
Do you have any rituals when you settle down to write?
Nope, but I do find myself almost exclusively writing at night.
Do you outline when you write or wing it?
For my personal works that aren’t being published any time soon? I wing it! I have a bunch of different projects half started and enjoy phasing in and out of them when the mood strikes.
Do you walk about works-in-progress or keep mum?
Mostly quiet, but an honored few have gotten sneak peaks here and there.
Do you prefer writing first drafts or editing?
First drafts, there is nothing quite as exhilarating as creating.
What was your favorite book as a child? As a teen? As an adult?
In second grade? The Franklin series (I even wrote some Fan-Fic back then). Anymore? Tough call, but The Great Gatsby is immortalized to me.
What is your favorite genre to read?
Realistic fiction.
What is your favorite genre to write?
I’ve been into rewriting Myths as children’s stories for my son lately.
Who is the author you most want to be compared to and why?
Hemingway. He just got me. Or I get him. And though he was a miserable guy at times, his writing is beautiful.
What is your favorite writing/illustrating how-to book, technique, or website that has helped your craft or provided inspiration?
Ha, this is going to sound cheesy, but when I need some inspiration I go re-read Chapter 1 of Gatsby. It’s pretty boring plot-wise, but the way Fitzgerald forged sentences there is beautiful.
Tell us about your writing journey. When did it begin?
I’d say in 2nd Grade (reference favorite book as a child section).
You’ve been stranded on a deserted island, so you finally have time to read, and this island happens to have a library! What’s the first book you crack open?
A Chekhov Anthology.
For one day, time travel is a reality and you have the opportunity to visit any famous deceased writer or artist you want. Who do you pick?
Come on, who isn’t going to pick Shakespeare?
You magically find a $100 bill in your box of cereal. In what frivolous way would you spend it?
This is especially magical – I hate cereal and never eat it. But I’d probably buy my son some sweet new toys.
What is your favorite quote?
“Life is essentially a cheat and its conditions are those of defeat; the redeeming things are not happiness and pleasure but the deeper satisfactions that come out of struggle.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald
What do you enjoy doing when not writing or teaching?
I enjoy a good video game, especially a RPG, every now and then.