Michelle Hickman started this round. She asked:
If you could dine with any author, and I do mean any whether alive or dead (yes, we're going into the realms of time travel - but hey, we have science fiction writers on this chain so we can always ask for them to write up the time machine specs), who would you want to dine with? And if you can ask them for advice on one writing element you feel you might be struggling at, what would it be?
This question was hard for me. Honestly, the idea of meeting someone I've never had any interaction with and only admired from afar, terrifies me. When I get nervous, I turn into the babbling idiot, so I'm pretty sure whoever I dined with would feel like they'd been thrown into some bad sitcom. It wouldn't be pretty. Trust me.
So, pretending that I can be articulate and eloquent when I'm nervous, first, I'd love to meet all my crit buddies in person. I know that probably sounds like a cop out, but these are the people who have helped me improve my writing and I'd be nowhere near where I am today without their help.
As for published authors, there are a couple. Even though I wasn't totally happy with the ending of Mockingjay, I still think Suzanne Collins is an incredible writer, and I'd love to know her secret to awesome pacing. And Janice Hardy--not only is she a great writer, she seems like a really cool person. She gives out a lot of info on her blog, so I don't know that I'd have anything in particular to ask her, but I'd still like to meet her and have her sign my ARC of The Shifter. By the way, my contest to win a copy of her recently released book, Blue Fire, is still going on. You can check it out here.
Also, I have to say that even though I write science fiction, I have issues with time travel, so if you're needing a time machine, you probably shouldn't come to me. My heart just wouldn't be in the project. ;)
Be sure to check out who Shaun would like to dine with, and Cole's answer tomorrow, er, yesterday. :)
If you could dine with any author, alive or dead, who would it be?
Isn't things like that? I could name the authors I would love to dine with, but I'm such a shy person I'd probably clam up when trying to talk with them. Great post!
ReplyDeleteEh. I'm totally okay with you flaking it and doing your WED post on FRI. Works for me!
ReplyDeleteAnd I thought it was funny you said you don't like time travel even though you write sci fi. I have a new WiP (NaNo project this year) that's a time travel story and MAN did I fight it! I did NOT want to write a time travel story! Alas, it is what it is!
Just funny to learn we have the same aversion, lol.
Omg! Yes! The crit buddies : D That's the first thing I thought about, too : )
ReplyDeleteOh, you lie, you LURVE time travel, but only the magically induced kind, not the sciencey kind, right? RIGHT?
ReplyDeleteLiving or dead? Rudyard Kipling. He always seemed like a sport.
Michelle: Thanks! Good to know I'm not the only socially awkward one out there. :)
ReplyDeleteAli: I'm afraid one day I'll feel compelled to do a time travel story. I think my world will unravel at that point. ;)
Plamena: I ♥ my crit buddies. :)
Tere: The way you did it, it worked. You know how much I love EVANGELINE. It's the we're going to go into the past to fix the present that makes me crazy. But that's probably just me over thinking things, of course. :)
Um, how many times have I flaked out? Don't answer that! lol Great answer, btw!
ReplyDeleteThere are so many: Jane Austen, Christopher Marlow, Shakespeare, Mark Twain, etc. I could go on and on. And yes, I'd be nervous, but I'd get over it. =]
ReplyDeleteOooh Suzanne Collins would be great - I could spend hours discussing the Hunger Games trilogy with her!
ReplyDeleteGreat picks! (I'd be nervous too.) ;)
ReplyDeleteLOL yeah, my mind goes blank when I'm nervous. It's not pretty. And you know, I'd LOVE to meet my CPs in person - I've only met two of them and it's something I seriously hope to accomplish one of these days :)
ReplyDeleteI don't think your answer is a cop-out at all. The people we admire don't always have to be published authors (or even famous). I agree with you about Suzanne Collins though. That would be interesting.
ReplyDeleteI guess if we can have dinner with any author we want, we could wish for good conversational skills, too. I'd need that option. :)
ReplyDeleteOh, I could totally see my shyness getting the better of me as well. I'm lucky that I live close to two of my crit partners that I can see them in person, but I agree--there are other crit partners I'd love to get a chance to meet.
ReplyDelete