I was asked to describe my life in a nutshell. I thought
about it for a second and responded, "very cramped." I'm pretty sure
that wasn't the response they were looking for.
It's never actually easy to sum up your life since there are so many
things that could be shared and other things not so much.
First I want to mention that I am a mom of three wonderful
children (Brent 17, Savannah 14 and Aaron 2 1/2) I am spoiled by them and also
they stretch my imagination actually giving me a world to create in. I am
fortunate to have a husband (Justin Dine) who is very supportive with my
writing and I do my best to give him the same favor. I feel compelled to write
and there are times I am fully passionate about writing. I also love to read.
The best advice I was ever given by an author who said if you want to become a
great writer then you need to become a great reader first.
I was limited to what I was allowed to read but then I think it shaped my personality and helped in other ways. Pretty much my parents were simply being careful to what I was exposed to at different ages and I'm thankful for that. Now that I'm a parents I know it wasn't easy and even I try my best to shield my children from some things. My parents were ministers, actually still are however I admit I do not follow the same religious beliefs anymore. While I grew up I was very fortunate to have protective parents, sometimes a little only so but they did what they felt best to keep me safe and for that I'm thankful. I had a normal childhood and was allowed to be a child not having to grow up before my time. Not all my friends that I had grown up with had this option so I consider my childhood very precious. I loved reading when I was younger and spent so many hours reading that pretty much books became my friends. I still prefer to read a book rather then socialize so I still work at forcing myself to become more outgoing. I used to write stories all the time and was a chronic daydreamer. I inherited that from my parents and sense of adventure from them.
I was limited to what I was allowed to read but then I think it shaped my personality and helped in other ways. Pretty much my parents were simply being careful to what I was exposed to at different ages and I'm thankful for that. Now that I'm a parents I know it wasn't easy and even I try my best to shield my children from some things. My parents were ministers, actually still are however I admit I do not follow the same religious beliefs anymore. While I grew up I was very fortunate to have protective parents, sometimes a little only so but they did what they felt best to keep me safe and for that I'm thankful. I had a normal childhood and was allowed to be a child not having to grow up before my time. Not all my friends that I had grown up with had this option so I consider my childhood very precious. I loved reading when I was younger and spent so many hours reading that pretty much books became my friends. I still prefer to read a book rather then socialize so I still work at forcing myself to become more outgoing. I used to write stories all the time and was a chronic daydreamer. I inherited that from my parents and sense of adventure from them.
The simple fact that I became a writer really wasn't
surprising. I loved reading when I was little and I still do. I also loved
writing. I always had a book to read and my parents were very supportive in the
way of providing all the paper or pencils I needed. I had several favorite
authors and because of those it helped me with the stories I enjoyed writing. I
do tend to read the same that I write. I always thought about how I would do
something different and then it went from there. I created my own characters
and then after time my characters felt as if they made themselves. Story lines
were always running through my head since I was a chronic daydreamer. I had a
teacher tell me once to stop daydreaming, that the daydreams would never help
me in life. Actually they have and not simply for writing novels but I've found
daydreaming gave me a reason to write. For me it was also a form of therapy not
that I aired dirty laundry from my life but it certainly hadn't prevented me
from it either. Many of my characters like/ dislikes and experiences have come
from my own life which as I feel made them more human even though they are
vampires.
I've found if I don't have too many distractions I can get a
lot done and it helps to stay mentally focused in my writing. However life
isn't always like that. I've had several jobs during this time, raising 3
children all makes life very interesting and incredibly busy! With all of our
pets there are a lot of distractions and I admit I am very easily distracted. A
fly, a frog on my window, phone ringing, background noise made by the kids or
my youngest who was 2, during most of my writing time he loved to scream and
test his vocal range. Working 3rd shift took the most out of me however like
most if writing is your passion you will find the time for it. I've always
heard actors during an interview they didn't want something to fall back on or
most likely that would happen instead of an acting career. I see it this way
for writing; I've burned through so many jobs trying to find something I really
loved doing even though a couple times I found something I enjoyed only to find
out their intent of hiring me was temporary. Writing is the one thing I love
doing and spend most of my time doing and always at some point going back to it
and I intend on making it my career. I love seeing someone work hard to make
their dreams come true and it's what I intend on doing even if it takes a while
which is quite realistic in this business.
I enjoy goofing around and love to look for an adventure.
Exploring and going for walks at night under a full moon with my family is what
I prefer doing. Depending on what mood you find me in I'll either be really out
going and ready to take charge or if I'm tired I'm more relaxed and very laid
back. Rarely do I get upset or angry however there is one person on this earth
that can still get me angry faster than light. But that's not what I like to
concentrate on; I prefer to live as drama free as possible. I don't like
yelling or arguing and when I hear it I naturally tune it out and there are
those out there who when I see them it brightens my day and I love getting my
hugs from them, yes >>>>Emily<<<< I'm mentioning you
especially for that one! There are people I keep thinking others are missing
out not knowing. I've met so many wonderful people and they were great for so many
different reasons. Sheila for one has almost an electric charm to her that when
she smiles you can't help but instantly be in a great mood! Brenda has such a
kind heart, Robyn and my cousin Ashley for their sheer determination and I
could go on listing everyone I know and for the reason I was thankful for knowing
them. I feel the same way about my characters I write about and I have the same
connection with them as I do everyone I meet. You never know when I get to know
you might end up in one of my books!
I'm pretty easy to get to know, I love taking to anyone if they are willing, I don't believe in having just one best friend and the best gifts I've been given are a book, cocoa and a Smore. See I told you I wasn't picky!
