And now a bit of getting to know interviews you with Pam and Tina. I (Pam) will be starting with some hopefully thought provoking questions for my friend Tina (Smith) Gower!
If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?
I wish I could say “honey badger” with total seriousness, but I’ll have to go with wolf. I’m a huge dog fan and nature fan. I feel like a wolf melds those together. Wolves are loyal, wise, and mysterious. They have a complex social structure and that interests me.
What is the highlight of your writing career so far, or favorite moment?
I would have to say the people. Meeting other writers and talking about ideas and stories. Writing is a weird profession, but it’s nice to know I’m not the only weirdo. I try to attend workshops and conferences that will benefit me craft-wise, but also try to go to ones I know my friends will be at.
What has been the low point of your writing career, and why did you keep going?
Several points have been low. First, I’d started with no expectations. Being dyslexic, I knew I’d be nobody’s draft pick, so I had no pressure, no past experiences that indicated I’d be any good at writing. In fact, I had the opposite. Lots of people assuring me that writing was not my thing and that’s okay. We can’t all be perfect, right? But I’d secretly loved fiction and wanted so badly to tell my own stories. I wanted to be good at it. When I started writing non-fiction, I sold the first story I sent (which was to Chicken Soup for the Soul). It gave me my first taste of success and a hint that my instincts were correct. That I did have it in me. But it took me years to sell any fiction. That was really hard. And then when I did sell, it brought on a huge amount of expectation to do it again. The pressure was really intense, but it’s also motivating. When I find myself stressed, I take a deep breath. I re-examine my goals and break them down into parts. I only focus on that. I don’t try to look behind or too far ahead.
If you could travel a hundred years into the future what do you expect to see and do?
I’m sort of funny about these kinds of things. I’d want to visit family. I’d want to see how they’re doing. It’d be fun to marvel in the advancements of technology and what has happened, but I’d want to see how my future generations are doing.
Favorite guilty pleasures, books, movies, comics?
Books all the way. I’m a sucker for romance books of pretty much any sub-genre. I’d say it’s about 90% of what I read (counting all the SF/F, mystery, suspense I read where that is a minor subplot) I remember sitting outside of class in graduate school with the first Outlander book and one of the people in my class came up and scoffed. She said she lost respect for me because I was reading not only a fantasy, but a romance. Romance was said the same way my children express disappointment for artichokes–even with the twisted face. This got everyone chiming in on the quality of literature, giving me suggestions. You know what? I spend a long time in my life reading the things other people told me were good, only to be bored and depressed–If I’m going to read for entertainment, it’s going to be something that engrosses me completely like science fiction, fantasy, or romance.
If you were on a desert island and could only take three things, what would they be?
I’m going to assume I have food, water, and shelter. Aside from that I’d bring a thick notebook, pens, and a cellphone. Because when I finish writing my stories and run out of paper I can call for someone to pick me up so I can type them out and sent them off to markets.
Feel free to ask your own in the comments section below. For every comment you leave the chances that the Star Wars sequels will actually be good increase by 10 percent. So comment away…