This month, I interviewed @ @how-about-no . She was the first person I talked to here on Wattpad, and her book 'Boys? Ew.' was the first book I read on Wattpad too. Her insightful thoughts and inspirational writing are wonderful, and she is one of my favorite Muslim writers. She really brings the concept of World Unity into perspective.
Part 1: YOU
1. What is your name and/or Wattpad username?
My Wattpad username is howaboutno. (Sorry, I don't share my real name.)
2. Tell us a bit about yourself. (Age, Hobbies, Interests, etc.)
Well, I'm 19. I'm a student; I hope to continue seeking beneficial knowledge all my life. (Don't roll your eyes at me. Knowledge is power; being educated is good. That doesn't mean I enjoy
school, or approve of the way things are being taught there and stuff. #PowerToTheWomen >.>)
I absolutely love to read and write; I guess that's a given if you join Wattpad, right? Uh, what
else? I'm really horrible at these 'about me' things. I'm a quiet person and I'm pretty much a fail at social interaction whether online or real life situations because I can't keep up small talk. I like deep discussions, though; if you get me started on a topic, I probably won't shut up. I also like poetry. The way simple words strung together can have such an impact on you...it always leaves me mindblown, to be honest. I'm also a little shy, which is why you'll find that, in order to get me to open up, other people initiate interaction. My friends, initially, found me a little scary and intimidating.Which, I'm not. I hope >.>
I like food. I like making food, too. Especially baking. I like cats. Unfortunately, my mom doesn't: 'either the cat lives in the house, or I do.' ...yeah, I'll keep my mom :P I don't know what else to say. So...yeah.
3. Have you written any books on Wattpad?
Yeah, I have, actually: 'Boys? Ew'. (It's my first book and a rough draft so please be kind ^^)
4. What was your inspiration for writing?
For 'Boys? Ew', my inspiration was the book 'A Muslim's Romantic Journey'. I was frustrated
because the author hadn't updated in, like, forever, so I let out that pentup emotion in the form of writing my own book, lol. Also, I always wanted to write a story about Muslim characters after I read 'Does My Head Look Big In This?' by Randa AbdelFatteh.
In general, though, I'm inspired to write because there's is such little Islamic fiction books out there written by Muslim authors. I'd like that to change. And, judging by the amount of talent here on Wattpad, I'm hopeful that that will happen, inshaAllah :) I think writing is a way to dispel and correct misconceptions about our religion, Islam; we can use our skills and talent positively to spread the truth.
Edit: There really is not that much Islamic fiction, even less Islamic teen fiction. 'Does My Head Look Big In This' was my first Islamic teen fiction book I've ever read, and 'Boys? Ew.' was my first book I read on Wattpad. Safe to say, I love them both. :)
5. What genres do you prefer to read/write? Any books that you really enjoyed?
Hmm. I'm not specific or picky when it comes to reading (or writing, for that matter); I don't
restrict myself to a certain kind of genre. I give a chance to anything, as long as it's decent (i.e. there is minimum vulgar language and/or and explicit content preferably,none at all; it makes me feel icky), and the grammar and/or spelling isn't cringeworthy (please, please, there's this thing called spellcheck and proofreading).
