The Liebster Award circulates around the blogosphere every year around this time, and this year, it came to me twice! It’s a fun little exercise where the award “recipient” answers a few fun questions, then passes on the award to others. Fun fact: “Liebster” is German for “dearest” or “sweetest.” (I felt obligated to look that up, since my daughter is a German major in college.) There are also a few German characters in my WIP. They don’t ever use that word. 🙂
I was given the Liebster Award by Michele Stegman and Denise D. Young. Michele also posted the rules, to the right. Since I got the award twice and most of their questions are different, I’m going to answer both sets of questions, instead of giving random facts. I’m sure there will be some random weirdness in my answers!
Michele asked:
1. Who or what most inspires you to write?
Fascinating people. Fascinating history. And Front Line Assembly!
2. Are you a daisy or an orchid? In other words, do you prefer the outdoors or being inside?
I like being outside when the weather’s nice, but I don’t like cold or hot. So I guess that makes me an indoor person!
3. Are you an introvert or extrovert? Which would you prefer to be?
I’m an introvert, and I’m okay with that.
4. Do you write with music playing or do you prefer silence when you write?
I can write either way–depends on my mood. Just no TV on, please!
5. Do you have a particular time of day you prefer to write?
I am not a morning person; after dinner seems to be my best writing time.
6. Do you have any pets? What are they?
Regular readers of this blog should be familiar with Isis, our Rottweiler who turns one year old this week! I also have an aquatic turtle (red-eared slider), three gerbils, and a goldfish.
Isis waits patiently for her walk.
7. What hobbies do you have?
I like to sew clothing, but don’t have much time for it any more.
8. Do you have a “day” job? What is it?
I am a software (web) developer, and have worked in that industry since 1997. Before that, I worked in graphic design for ten years, which is also what my college degree is in.
9. What is your favorite beverage?
Mountain Dew!
10. What is your favorite animal?
That’s a tough question–I love all kinds of animals! But probably dogs, if I have to pick one.
11. Do you have a writers support group or critique group?
I used to belong to a local chapter of Romance Writers of America, where I met Michele and many of my writing friends, until the chapter was forced to disband at the end of 2014 due to new regulations from National that made it impossible for us to field a president. Several of us still meet informally. I have also made many online friends from ROW80 (where I “met” Denise) and in Kristen Lamb’s WANA (“We Are Not Alone”) networking group.
And here are Denise’s questions:
1.) What most inspires your writing?
See above
2.) It’s a cold and stormy night. What book do you curl up with?
Whatever I’m currently reading, normally an ebook on my Kindle.
3.) What was your favorite book when you were growing up?
Just one??? Can’t do it. But a few that stand out are The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl, Below the Root by Zilpha Keatley Snyder, The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander and C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia. Obviously, I was a big fantasy fan (still am, but now want romance with it).
4.) Who is your greatest inspiration?
Again, too many to narrow down, so I’m going to weasel out of this one and just say a lot of historical people, people who’ve overcome adversity, and writers whose work I admire.
5.) What’s your favorite movie? What do you love about it?
Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, because it’s time travel, it’s hilarious, and they’re great characters!
6.) Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, white chocolate, or no chocolate? What’s your preference?
Dark. But they’re all good!
7.) If you could travel to any place, real or imagined, where would it be?
Australia!
8.) What do you do when you’re not writing?
Play way too many computer games, do business stuff and paperwork for my husband’s businesses, and of course there’s the day job…
9.) What’s your hidden talent?
I can curl my tongue.
10.) If you were a supernatural/paranormal creature/being, what would you be and why?
One who could be in multiple places at once, so one of me could go to work and do the day job, and another of me could write LOL.
11.) Finish this sentence: The perfect day involves…
Family, fun, relaxation, and writing!
Now, we’re supposed to make up our own questions and pass this on, but I need to save my creativity for my fiction, so my recipients can just take their pick and use either of my sets of questions. And my awardees, should they choose to accept, are:
If you aren’t into this, no worries. But if you accept, I look forward to seeing your responses!
What I read this week: I didn’t finish anything new, and this blog’s already running long, so I’ll catch up with this next week.
ROW80 Update: My goal was to write in the revisions for chapters 5-10, and I made that goal! This week will, I hope, be a quiet one, so I’m going to push to get chapters 11-17’s revisions written in.
What about you–do you have any fun answers to any of those questions you’d like to share here? How are you doing on whatever goals you might have, whether writing or otherwise? Please share–I’d love to hear from you!
Jennette Marie Powell writes stories about ordinary people in ordinary places, who do extraordinary things and learn that those ordinary places are anything but. In her Saturn Society novels, unwilling time travelers do what they must to make things right... and change more than they expect. You can find her books at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Kobo, iTunes, and more.