5 Questions Meme

[xerinmichellex]

Meme-slapped by rhoda_rants

* Leave me a comment if you wanna play.
* I'll respond by asking you five questions so I can satisfy my curiosity.
* Update your journal with the answers to the questions. Include this explanation in the post and offer to ask other people questions.


1. When did you start taking writing seriously, in terms of wanting to actually be published?

I wish I could say ever since I was four and held my first pencil, but the truth is being a published writer didn't hit me until a year after I graduated high school. Now, I'd always been a "story-teller" whether it came to my Barbies or playing the Sims on the computer; and I wrote two horrendous "plays" in 7th grade. I never thought I could be a writer until I was much older; or the only writing job I could have was in journalism. Finishing my first, real novel at nineteen was the turning point where I decided I didn't want to be anything other than a published writer. Three years--and numerous manuscripts--later, I still have that passion. Even if Query Hell sucks.

2. How did you come across Emilie Autumn?

Short Story: iTunes

Long Story: I was browsing through the Dresden Dolls catalogue on iTunes when a few viewer mixes popped up--specifically one entitled, "Playlist for Wayward Victorian Girls." Interested in all things victorian, I checked the playlist out and there were a few songs by an "Emilie Autumn." The one song, "The Art of Suicide" attracted me based on title alone, so I looked it up on YouTube. By the end of the week, I'd heard all the songs on Opheliac (references to Hamlet make my heart sing). I was HOOKED! I tend to get obssessive when I find something new, so I learned everything I could about Miss Autumn...and that snowballed into me buying her CD's and becoming a loyal muffin. So, it's an ingredient of her music, her visuals, and who she is as a person, and only if she suddenly turned into a murderer I might not like her as much. Or maybe I would...

3. Last book you read that really, truly blew your mind?

Columbine by Dave Cullen. I distinctly remember how I heard about Columbine. It wasn't on TV, or that day at school, but a few hours after it happened. I was at Burger King with my father and brother, and I remember this elderly man saying to me, "It's terrible what happened to those kids today." Having no clue what he was talking about, I just smiled and nodded my head. (As you do with the elderly.) When I got home, I found out what he was talking about.

Columbine, for some reason, has always stuck with me, and I'm glad that Cullen took the story and dug deeper into what went wrong. He dispelled all the rumors and speculation, where even one of the killers turned into a victim of a callous, psychopath. Columbine represents something more than a terrible school shooting, and too few people realize that.

4. DC or Marvel? Be honest.

Jeez, why didn't you just ask me which are cuter, puppies or kittens? Um...I have more DC comics/graphic novels. (Though, if we want to get technical, Dark Horse outnumbers the DC ones.) While everyone watched the Looney Toons, Spiderman and X-Men were my Saturday morning cartoons growing up. But I also watched Batman religiously. I was even Michelle Pfeiffer!Catwoman for Halloween one year. The Dark Knight has to be one of the best superhero movies. But Tobey Maguire IS Spiderman. Oh, I know! Watchmen was published by DC, so DC. But overall I think I'm a Dark Horse girl.

(I should mention most of my "comic book" knowledge comes from the Batman, X-Men, Spiderman cartoons--so I don't think I'm that great an authority on judging who has the better comics. Just sayin'...)

5. Last movie you saw in a theater?

ARRRGGG!...the last movie I saw in theaters was the Nightmare on Elm Street remake. Yeah... Come next week, though, I can say Toy Story 3 and retain some of my pride.

Comments

19

[dcullenwriter.livejournal.com]

BTW, 19 is really impressive to finish your first novel.

Query hell is truly awful. Have you tried looking at agents' blogs? I can recommend some good ones. They offer insights, and also a way to get a sense of their personality (to see if they might be right for you).

Re: 19

[xerinmichellex.livejournal.com]

My Google reader is filled with agent blogs from Kristin Nelson, Nathan Bransford, Janet Reid...just to name a few. You're right, they are totally helpful, and they help me stay with writing even when Query Hell seems like a dark abyss.

And thanks for the above links too!