Tagged by Donna- some random questions and answers :)

Okay, I know I have been M.I.A, but I was on a much needed vacation. Now I'm back and slowly getting my land legs back.  The wonderful DONNA has tagged me in a questionnaire to get to know me better, and I eagerly agreed.  I think it is wonderful how much support there is in the blog sphere and I enjoy getting to know each of you on a more personal level. So here's a bit about me :)

Question #1:Who is your favorite fictional character, and why?
Hmmmm, great question!! There are so many, it really is hard for me to choose, so I will tell you my favorite fictional heartthrob.  It has to be Jacob from the twilight series-and not the one from the movie, though he is smoking hot- I loved the character from the book. I was screaming at Bella for not picking him.  I get it, she has to follow her heart, but I would have surely picked me that sweet wolf boy :)

Question # 2: How do you come up with the names for your own characters?Sometimes I google a foreign word that sums up them or their ability. Example- Nuri is a character in my book who can spew fire. Well I found a foreign word for fire that was something like Nuria- I think, and I liked it, so Nuri it is.  Other names are picked straight from the bible/ old Hebrew. Such as Samael which is an ancient/ alter name for satan, and Gabriyel who was angel mentioned several times in the bible. Samael is my villain and Gabe is my hero. Rhet Jussics- who is my supporting mc is Jesus Christ rearranged (took me a few hours of letter playing to come up with that one :) So I do put much thought into each and every name, and some of them were changed to better suit the character as the story went on.

Question #3: What book would you pass up, even if it was offered for free?Oooh, hmmm. toughie. I love to read, and I love to read all kinds of genres.  I enjoy seeing the different writing styles and plot weaving. Hmmm, I guess the only thing I would actually say, 'no thank you to' would have to be religious books that aren't Christian. - Now I'm not talking about fiction, b/c I love it all, Harry Potter, Twilight, currently I'm loving a Hindu fiction- I'm talking about 'real' religious books meant to teach and convert.- That would be a definite 'no thank you.'

Question #4: Do you listen to music while you write?  If so, what is on your playlist?Typically I don't, I prefer silence. But my husband did turn me on to 'Knights of Cydonia' by Muse. I play that over and over whenever I am writing an intense battle scene. If my book is ever made into a movie, I will demand this song be in it! :) - not that they would care about my demands or anything :-D haha

Question #5: Do you have to make time to write, or have a set schedule; and do you have any writing quirks?I am a stay at home mom, so I have a pretty routine schedule where I get to write for 2 hours while my son is in school, and then 2 more hours during nap time.  I try and squeeze in any extra time I can get with my laptop. And my writing quirk is that I must have a drink sitting next to me.  Other than that I will write wherever and whenever I can :)

Question #6: Who is you dream agent/publisher?In truth I don't know much about the agents out there-YET.  I will do my research before I query, but this will be my first time querying ya fantasy, so, sadly I am very uneducated as of yet :( (I have queried a few pb's but it seems like there are much more choices for ya fantasy) I do know Writers House is a huge one and any agent from there would be a dream.

Question #7: Do you prefer printed books or ebooks?I'm gonna have to go with printed.  I stare at a screen enough thank you.  When I read for fun I want to turn pages and fold the corners to save my place :) I do have a few ebooks that I plan on checking out though, as soon as I come up for air from my current wip.

Question #8: What is the weirdest dare you ever accepted?Oh this is awesome!  It totally brings back a slew of wonderful/ horrible, unforgettable memories! You see, there was this game I used to play called jinga wammie (I'm sure I butchered the spelling).  Anyways, it was the regular jinga, but on the bottom of every tile was a truth or dare. Now they were fairly innocent dares, but some were just plain mean.  You had to sit boy, girl, boy, girl, so when someone picked the tile that said put your neighbor's underwear on your head, or switch shirts with your neighbor- well it was hilarious.  Big hairy guys wearing my size small t-shirts.  Let's just say some clothes were ruined in the process, but all for a laugh so it was okay by me.  (We were respectful and exchanged clothes behind bathroom walls and such.) But those were the funny/ nice dares.  Some were awful- lick the bottom of your neighbor's bare foot, or drink a glass of water with spit in it ....keep in mind, it was always a guy sitting next to me, and in Florida, where it's hot- feet get stank!!! Those are the top dares that came to mind... but in all honesty, I was a bit wild, and there might be a few R-rated dares. But I will choose not to mention those publicly   8-o


Well that about sums it up :)

As I said I am so close to finished with my wip it hurts. I am desperate to wrap it up so I can begin to enter some of these fabulous blog contests! So I promise to be a better blogger in the very near future.  Thank you to anyone who took the time to read this! You all rock!!!

Amber