5am

In theory, 5am has no actual use on account of all normal people being asleep in that region of the morning, but alas, that is not currently the case for me. My sleeping pattern is now so screwed up that the only thing I can think to do to fix it is stay up until midnight tonight and then hopefully reset it in that way. 

Anyway, figuring that there has got to be some better use of my insomnia than eating potatoes and drinking Martini - I know, I'm odd - but not really being able to be bothered to type up any more of my novel - Hermes' down side is his lack of internal memory - I figured I ought to drop a few words in for all of you lovely people. 

I am going to need so much coffee to survive today...

Okay, so a certain circle of writers that I speak to have been doing this "ooh, tag me and we'll interview each other thing". Frankly, I considered myself to have far too much of a life, but since it proves not, I'm going to answer the questions which I find entertaining. - I may be answering your questions, but I'm disregarding your silly rules!!

1. what inspired you to become a writer ? 

There are so many bull ---- answers I could give to this, but to be honest, I don't actually know. It was one of these things that just kind of happened. When I was about 11, I had my first computer and I had always read a lot, so I started writing as well. I was encouraged a lot by my Year 6 teacher, but I don't think I would say he was particularly inspiring with it. I think I already had decided it was the direction I wanted to go in - when I was being a fire fighting, dolphin training ballerina singer actress that was. I had time on my hands back then, okay?

2. where do you get your ideas from, when you write your stories?

I would say that I get inspiration from everything around me, but what makes it work is the fact that I think about things in a particular odd little way that seems to work for me. It's really strange, because sometimes, I say things or I write things that really I think are particularly unadventurous pieces of drivel, and then someone tells me that actually, I've captured something perfectly and that click of understanding that you want just happens, although sometimes, the curtains are just blue and it's not a reflection on ------ all. 

3. in terms of your writing, where do you see yourself in five to ten years time? 

At one point, I would have said that Salinger tripping off into the woods had the right idea, but considering my answer to the last question, I should hope you can see a change of point of view there. Geographically, I hope I'm still in London. I like London, because it's a quirky, busy and ever changing city in a way that lots of other places aren't. I moved here a little over a year ago and I see differences from when I got here to now. I go back to other places and they're still the same sleepy little places. Hopefully in that time I will have managed to publish - and I don't mean self publish.

4. is writing a hobby of yours? that is to say, do you simply do it for fun? 

I'm certainly not in it for the money... I write because I want to write, I self publish because I want to share my thoughts and ideas - that's also the reason I blog. Writing for the cash is obvious. I really hope no one sees me in that way. 

5. is writing something you would like to be well known for? 

The instant answer in my head is no, because of people like the lady who wrote 50 Shades. She is well known and, quite frankly, I've read the series and it was all drivel. Why did I read it then? Something has to really make me lose the will to live for me to put it down. I can only think of one book in recent years that did that to me. I guess though, there are people like Robert Muchamore and John Green who are reasonably well known, and pretty awesome, so it's swings and roundabouts really. 

6. are any of your stories worthy of a sequel, or more?

The first thing to note here is that I used to SUCK at endings. I worked on it and got a lot better, but I don't like tying off all the lose ends in a big, neat and pretty pink ribbon. 

I want to write sequels to both the books I have self-published, but there is so much difference between an idea and a novel and sometimes, making the ideas you have work isn't possible, and it's a shame, because if you know you want to leave space for a sequel, you can pretty well set up for one and not say things that you wanted to say perhaps. What I like about all my novels is that they are actually becoming very interconnected. Characters, places, companies or ideas pop up in different novels and try to tie things into a web. I like that. 

7. are you working on anything at the moment? 

Of course. I have a few things at a few different stages though. I have my NaNoWriMo piece which is essentially the dramatic monologue of the life of a young woman, which is essentially then setting up for me writing a novel called Butterfly House. Like Fairies was my first little trip into fantasy, this will be my first proper trip into horror, but I'm still collecting my thoughts and consolidating my ideas with that one. Other than that there is - somewhere - a half sort of sequel to Insanity Breaks in the pipeline and an idea for a sequel to Fairies in its absolute infancy. 

Yes, there is always a lot going on in my head. 

8. what is your favourite part of writing (word building, dialogue, character progression, scene descriptions)?

I like to be heavy on the description. I can't help it. I notice little ridiculous things for no reason and I like to give that to my characters. I like building the characters and seeing how they interact, but I also like the part where I get to sit back and see how there is literally ME all over every page. You can't keep yourself off the page and there is no reason to try. Okay, it can feel invasive, but you are in control of whether people read your stuff or not, and let's face it, when you write fiction, people are always going to assume things about you because of what they read between the lines. 

9. what type of story do you prefer? (short stories, novellas, novels etc)

I prefer my novels. I have some ideas for some short stories, but there just isn't the opportunity to get as involved with the characters and I like how attached I become to them. Crying at the end of a novel lets me know I've created characters I can love and that feel real to me, and I want other people to feel that, too. Oh God. 

10. if you could be anywhere in the world but your home town, where would you choose to be?

Well, first off, I'm not from London, but I will include London, because it feels like home, even though it is not a town. I'm pretty fond of Niagra, Iceland and Florida, but it would be a fight between Manhattan and Fiskardo in Kefalonia. I don't know which would win. Probably Fiskardo. 

11. everyone has their own list of The Rules for good writing. what are yours? 

• Once again, I don't think it's right to even try to leave yourself off of the page.
• Description is a major key factor
• I don't care if the place exists, just make it feel real to me. 
• Characters need to be related to.
• Nothing is ever perfectly tidy

12. do you plan? if/when you do, do you always stick to it?

The most like planning I ever do is character files and then I never look at them while I'm writing. As I go along, I sometimes keep time lines, because I like to skip about in time - it's the way my head works - but no, I don't plan. I'm not very big on knowing where I'm going to, because that feels pretty boring. I even change the way I walk home so that it at least feels different. 

13. other than writing, what makes you tick?

There's a world outside of writing? 

Just kidding. There's this infant that I love to look after, who's the daughter of a friend of mine. Erm, I kind of enjoy the course I'm studying? I like the generic stuff like music and traveling and friends and blah blah blah yawn, but writing is one of the only things I get passionate and energetic over. And politics, but the less sad about that the better. 

14. if you were stranded on a desert island with food, water and shelter, what five items would you want with you? 

1. Puppy. - I have had this dog since I was seven and I'm nearly twenty. I don't care how sad that is. I don't really go away for an extended period of time without him, so yes, him. It. Whatever. 
2. A change of clothes - I'd want to at least wash what I was wearing and not have to run around nude. 
3. iPad - I can type on it pretty well and it's far more reliable than the Craptop, plus it does music. :)  

 I could be content with just that!!  

15. on said island, what five books would you like?

1. The Monsters of Gramercy Park by Danny Leigh is an ultimate favourite, so I would have to have that with me.
2. Sunshine by Robyn McKinley, because it's the best vampire book since the Anne Rice series. 
3. A Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I have already finished An Abundance of Katherines and Paper Towns, and Looking For Alaska is my current bed time story. That one is next on the list. 
4. A Thinkers Guide to God by Peter Vardy. I've read bits of it when it's relevant and it would keep my mind somewhere near Philosophy.
5. The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins - in case I run out of toilet paper... In all honesty, I know Dawkins is a fantastic scientist, but he needs to butt out of trying to be a philosopher, because you can't just paste over religions and call it indoctrination of children and essentially fairy stories. That really just winds me up. 

16. what do you find most rewarding about writing a book? 

Proving to myself that I can is a pretty special thing, I guess. Other than that, I just like that it brings out how I think about things or feel about things in a different way, or presents things to me in a different way, and then I get to take that back into my life.

I just found something called GoodReads...off to check that out and then maybe sleep before getting the train back to Manchester!! 

Continuing good luck to all of those facing NaNo this time around!! 

Charlie x 

:)