5Qi-2

@RoseBlossom79 - 5Qi-2

Q1. What inspired you to write your first book?

A. Different sources inspired me to write my first book (which is part of my Carpe Diem series), entitled "Seize the day my love".

First, I should state that I am a childhood cancer survivor, and in many of my stories I tend to hint that through my characters who have gone through many obstacles and prevailed. In fact one of the characters in my story has a speech problem; a similar case to one where I had to relearn how to speak after my surgery. I want people to be aware of these disabilities, because many didn't know about it when I was a child. My hope for the disabled children of the next generation would be that they wouldn't be mistreated as I was by classmates.

In a brighter note, I also wrote the novel as a tribute to the beloved comedian, Robin Williams, who passed away last year. He starred in a movie called "Dead Poet's Society" and had a role as a teacher in an all boy's school. Here, his common saying to his students was "Carpe Diem my lads ... Seize the Day!" [Carpe Diem actually means seize the day in Latin]. I have always been inspired by watching a movie or reading a great book about inspirational teachers who have led their students to believe in themselves!

Thirdly, my brother is an MLB (Major League Baseball) fan. Therefore, in honor of his favorite sports game, my male characters who are jocks, will play this sport. Most of the other stories I have read include the ever popular football, soccer or basketball; so I wanted to try out something different. I also wanted to include a rope obstacle course in the story, since I really did do one in college to overcome my fear of heights.

Lastly, I come from a military family, so that is the starting point of this story. I also plan to do further research for that, once I continue writing my books.

Q2. How did you discover Wattpad?

A. I discovered Wattpad through my Flipboard App last year. I opened it up, and typed in the word 'books on web' in the search engine, and found an interesting Wattpad book under one of the articles. So when I clicked on it, the instructions told me to go to the Wattpad site, if I wanted to continue on. And ever since then, I got hooked to reading, writing and socializing here.

Q3. Why do you write?

A. I have been writing since I was a child. My first story that I still have, was a one page story of a dinosaur who knew how to skateboard. That 2nd grade project still makes me proud, because it was also written before I was taken to the hospital. But even a sickness cannot take away my love for books. When I was in 5th grade, I had the opportunity to write a short story that was mock published in our class. I do not know what happened to that book now, but that was the first time I understood the word 'copyright' meant. I am also a poet, and used to write my own song lyrics. In my first year of college, I wrote a short operetta about two headstones who talked to each other while telling a story. Of course, my teachers were astounded of my creativity, since I went beyond the normal instructions.

I write because I like to entertain people. I am not that talkative as my brother, but I like to write 'behind the scenes'. And if anyone just wants to give me a blank sheet of paper and pen, I can come up with an outline for a story within a few minutes ... just give me an idea to work with! But to put 'it' altogether, I write because it's how I express myself, and when I share it with others, especially on stage, it allows me to find my 'own voice'.

Q4. How important are names to you in your books?

I like meaningful names to be a part of my books; other times the characters have names of people I treasure as good friends or are relatives. For instance my main character, Marlene is the name of a classmate I met when I was a medical assisting student. I picked her to be the main character because of her nickname 'Mae," which is short and sweet. According to the urban dictionary website, a woman by the name "[Marlene] is a strong, beautiful young lady, who loves to be with her friends. Many people [adore her] but she keeps only a handful of whom she treasures ... She is funny and loves to laugh. She can be a rebel, a daredevil, and a nerd, but she's worth all the trouble." Thus, that describes my character in a nutshell! I also found myself dedicating some names to some of the many Wattpad friends I have met, so those who do befriend on this site might get an honorable mention!

Q5. Which Fictional character best represents your personality and why?

The cartoonist, Greg Evans, created a comic strip called Luann in 1985. The main character in this skit is a character who has a similar personality like mine. Luann goes through many obstacles through life. From teenage crushes, having broken hearts, sharing stories with friends from grade school to high school and making tough college decisions; she has done them all. The heroine goes through many trials and errors of everyday life, and even though she is ridiculed by some of her peers; Luann always walks out with an open mind that makes her friends adore her. Thus, I can somehow relate to Luann, who is actually based on the cartoonist's daughter, Karen.

That is kind of the person who I admire the most - one who can look up to new opportunities in the near future.

Bulletin: I am in the middle of finishing my second book of the Carpe Diem Series which is entitled 'Seize the Moment," which is written in the voice of my male character Owen Thomas. At the same time I am also writing a book called "Grl heard around the world". It is a collection of short stories that are from different places across the globe, and is a tribute to my great uncle in the Philippines. I am also one of the six Wattpad ambassadors who has created the community profile called 'Coffee Community'. Our page is a place where every Wattpad reader can take a load off and pick up a short story along the way. So anyone is invited, to come take a look at the page. I will leave the link to the site under my works cited.

Book and Author recommendations:

1. Employee of the Year - by DmitriRagano

2. Julian - by LolaDom

3. Falling in the Garden - by WalterKlimczak (It's book 1 out of a 4 part series)

4. 666: A Psyological Thriller - by Annwrites

5. Adventure in Funeral Crashing - by MildaHarris (It's book 1 out of a 4 part series) These books are all fun to read if you like that suspenseful mystery thriller, sci-fi or romantic genre found in a great story!

Thanks for interviewing me Thomas!

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#5Qi-2 October 25th, 2015