Awards are fun!

The lovely Tara Tyler gave me the Liebster Award. Yay! Here’s the rules:

• paste the award badge to your blog, 
• give us 11 random facts about yourself, 
• answer the 11 questions, 
• and choose your nominees

But you know I’m a rule breaker.

1. What made you want to be a writer?

This is such an odd one for me because I never actually made the conscious choice to be a writer. I’ve always been a writer. I wrote my first book because I’d caught up to the end of a series and I had the whole summer and needed my fix (yes, I guess I started with a Mary-Sue FanFic). But I’d written other stories before. It was always in the back of my head that I was a writer biding my time. Everyone said I needed life experience before being a writers, so I poured myself into science in the mean time. But then I had a story I just had to tell, so I started and finished my second novel while in grad school.

2. Where do you find the inspiration for your writing?

I don’t find inspiration, it finds me. It tends to grab me by the neck and shake me like a dog with a ragdoll.

3. What are your goals for 2013?

I’d like to get published in 2013 (or get a contract), but so much of that is timing and luck that I don’t feel like I should list it as a goal. A goal should be something I can really control the outcome for. So for my goals: I’m going to finish revising DEAD STAR and query it; I’m going to write my super sekrit project, STONE DEAF; then I’ll revise PRINCESS SINGULARITY. If I’m really, really, really diligent, I’ll be able to start on the first draft of my super sekrit project #2 which doesn’t really have a good title yet (it’s so secret, even I don’t know the title!).

4. What’s your favorite quote?

“Shoot for the moon. At least you won’t shoot your foot off.” –Ellie Quinn from Lois Bujold’s Vorkosigan series.

5. Where in the world would you most like to visit?

There’s a series of druid structures that are aligned so they receive light in the temple proper only on the days right around the winter solstice. I WANT to go to one of these, but it’s pretty unlikely to get a ticket. We sign up every year, but they have a lottery system, and, well, we haven’t been lucky yet. I think it’s very egalitarian, so I’m not against the lottery system. These temples (for lack of a better word) are located in both Ireland and in Scotland. So yeah, that’s where I’d like to go. Following that, I’d like to see the Great wall of China and maybe even the cliff dwellings along the Yangtze river that haven’t all been flooded out.

6. What five things would you take to a desert island

It’s cheating, but I’d bring a five star resort with me. That way I wouldn’t have to do all the survival bologna, and my family would have a nice place to stay while I did the survivor thing, because I’m bringing them into exile with me. I’d also need my computer, a way to charge it (probably at the resort), and internet access.

7. What is your biggest strength and your biggest weakness?

My biggest strength? That depends on the situation. I’ll go with my amazing unbiased skillz. I can really look at the facts and put aside the emotional aspect of problems, so long as it’s not one of my problems. My biggest weakness? Definitely my self doubt.

8. If you could meet one author, who would you choose?

Lois McMaster Bujold, but I have a horrible confession. I’ve met a number of stars and people I really looked up to, and they weren’t very much fun to met. One of my idols turned out to be an autograph signing robot, so I was very sad. It’s made me very leery of meeting people who are famous. I guess it makes sense. In a strange way, we have relationships with these people that are completely one-sided. When we meet them, they have no idea who we are, or what we do, and we’re so nervous as to be stupid about it.

9. What’s your favorite film?

I only get one? How about a top 5? Incredibles, Howl’s Moving Castle, The Harry Potter Series, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings. And even that’s not covering the bases…

10. If you went into The Hunger Games, what would be your most useful skill?

I did a lot of fencing, so strange as it sounds, probably sword fighting.

11. Which fictional male would you most like to marry?

I’m already married, but I’d love to spend some time with Mal Reynolds.

My questions for my nominees are:

a.        What naive misconception did you have about writing books when you started?

b.      What is your favorite part of writing?

c.       What is the one thing you would change about publishing and why?

d.      Do you have an inspiration list? Can you give us a sample?

e.       If you were a super villain, what would be your fatal flaw?

f.       If you were a super hero, what would be your super power?

g.      If you could go on a trip to a tropical island but you didn’t get to pack anything before you left, would you go?

My five nominees: The Lizzes  (Poole, Seckman, LizWritesBooks), Rachel, and Annalisa

I hope everyone is having a great week. I'm slogging along in revision land, but I feel like there's a light at the end of the revision. I'm just worried the light is another revision (it is, who am I kidding).