I’ll be entering the Like A Virgin Contest this July. One of the events is the official “Getting to Know You” blog hop, where we’re hoping to meet some other contestants, potential beta readers and critique partners. If you’re interested in becoming writing buds, let me know in the comments! Admission to the contest is still open, so if you’re interested (and you have a contest-virgin up your sleeve), come check out the contest and join in the blog hop!
- How do you remember your first kiss? I like to think of it as bold. So far my experience with romance had been reading and writing romantic fanfic… and as it turns out, it’s not entirely realistic. When Boxy moved in to kiss me (yes, my husband was also my first kiss), I did exactly what the heroines in all my favorite steamy fics did: I turned it into a full-on make-out session. Maybe it’s not conventional, but we both had a lot of fun.
- What was your first favorite love song? I’m guessing somewhere around 90% of songs are love songs in one way or another. My first favorite that I thought of as a love song, though, was Desert Rose by Sting. It’s not a love song to any one person– it’s more about the enchantment of being in love. I used to call the local radio station constantly begging them to play it, but the only times I ever heard it on the radio were completely by accident. How’s that for a metaphor?
- What’s the first thing you do when you begin writing for the day? These days, I start by making a to-do list of all the stuff I need to get done by the time I get to bed, and my #nifty350 is always at the top of that list, and it’s the first thing I cross off. Sometimes I only get 350 words written, and sometimes I get really into it and write a couple thousand.
- Who’s the first writer who truly inspired you to become a writer? Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. She wrote her first book when she was thirteen, and it wasn’t about the sort of stuff I was used to– instead it was about pretty much everything my teenage self wanted to be. Atwater-Rhodes could do it, and she didn’t need a Hemmingway-esque alcohol problem alcohol or drugs or grad school (which includes alcohol and drugs with the cost of tuition) or even “life experience” to get there. She just had a story to tell, and she told it. So why couldn’t I?
- Did the final revision of your first book have the same first chapter it started with? Excuse me while I peel myself off the floor, I’m laughing too hard. I’m actually torn between what I’d call my “first” book. DREAMKEEPER is the first story I started writing with any serious intentions… but even then, it was just a fanfiction at the time. So the original first chapter was about a
poorly disguisedfictionalized version of myself crawling through a secret door inmyher closet door and coming out just outside of Rivendell, and then met an orc who remembered being an elf before the whole Silmarillion deal went down. I didn’t even get to chapter five before it wasn’t even recognizably associated with The Lord of the Rings anymore. At least two dozen redrafts, rewrites and re-imaginings later, only a few accidental details bear any resemblance to the original fanfic. Hell, even the tech level got nudged forward by a few hundred years. Someday I’d love to host a contest to see who can figure out which of my characters started out as which LotR characters. I think the truth might surprise you. - For your first book, which came first: major characters, plot or setting? The first book I finished writing (my other first), started with a name: Chicago. I had a very clear mental image of this character– blond, quick and scrawny, wearing oversized clothes and shingle tiles for bracers– and immediately I knew all Chicago’s friends and family would also be named for cities, and that this would be a post-apocalyptic story. What I didn’t know was Chicago’s gender. I ended up having to consult my little sister to decide whether Chicago was a masculine or feminine name. The rest fell into place from there.
- What’s the first word you want to roll off the tip of someone’s tongue when they think of your writing? I don’t want a word– I want a laugh, or a squeal, or a gasp, or one of those tumblr-famous keyboard mashes. What I want more than anything is for my writing to leave somebody speechless.
jwtroemner.com 
Cool! A pitch contest! Those can be great fun. Too bad I don’t have time right now or I’d jump in with ya. 🙂 Good luck with it!
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Thank you~
Maybe you can join in the fun for next year’s contest– and there are plenty more throughout the year if you’ve got time later on.
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I’m amazed at how many of our participants first kisses were their husbands!
Good luck in the contest!
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Adored your answer to #2, but then, I do love me a good metaphor…best of luck with LV13!
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Thank you! And the best of luck to you, too!
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Love your last answer! What a great response! Nice to meet you and good luck! 🙂
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Thank you! And good luck to you too!
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I remember read Amelia Atwater Rhodes in high school and thinking, ‘wow, that’ll never happen to me’, she truly is inspiring. And my husband was my first kiss and making out was involved as well, haha!
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You know, I’m hearing a lot in that direction. Funny how it goes, isn’t it?
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That’s great to start with 350 and see where it goes from there. Some days that’s all I can crank out. But as long as I keep going, more will come to me 😀 I loved your answer to the last question too. Well said!
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Thank you~
What’s kind of mind-blowing is that, while 350 is a far cry from Nanowrimo’s 1667, it’s still more than a full page every day. And that’s a major accomplishment, even though it doesn’t bleed you dry the way a larger wordcount might.
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Nify350 – I love that! STING rocks! And, I LOVE #7! Best of luck with the contest!
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Thank you~ And let’s not forget Sting’s amazing compadres, The Police!
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I think you’re right about a reaction to your writing being even better than a word. Good luck, I’m off to check out my closet for portals into a LOR world. That would be nice 🙂
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While you’re in there, make sure to check for Narnia, too!
Thank you~
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I also adore Desert Rose. And the video is awesome. Thanks for joining us and good luck!
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Thank you, and good luck to you, too!
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Amelia Atwater-Rhodes…I don’t know how I forgot about her in my post. I clearly remember being in my early teens and thinking if she got published/followed her dreams.wrote a boss book at thirteen I could too. Of course, now I’m 20 and unpublished but unlike my early teen self I have a completed MS under my belt, I like to say she gave me my first push.
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The wonderful thing about writing is that there’s no deadline– whether we’re 13 or 20 or 95, we’re only limited by our stories. I wish you lots of luck in your endeavor!
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Love the nifty350! I may adopt that into my own writing.
Also, love the name Chicago. Does wonder for my name obsession. LOL 🙂
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Thank you~
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Nice to “meet” you and good luck!
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Good luck to you too!
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I’ve written many short stories but never finished a book. I’m 3 chapters into my current effort and stalling because short stories are so much easier but I did laugh at your description under first kiss. I read tons of romance too and when my first kiss happened I was like, wait, not once did a heroine whine about it being sloppy/mushy… why do I feel like I’m drowning in saliva?!? Thankfully kissing has become a better experience And my descriptions of said romantic interludes have improved as well. 🙂 Thanks for sharing. Good luck in all your blogging endeavors. I found you through the meet the bloggers link for the #31dbc. 🙂
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Thank you~
You know, I kind of wish more romance stories (especially YA) played more with the fumbles and foibles of first love. There’s so much opportunity for drama and all sorts of related hilarity.
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