8 Things I've Never Told You

Today I'm sharing all my secrets.

I post a lot of book reviews and writing tips. I often talk about the books I'm writing, but I haven't written a personal post in a while. Blogging isn't just about sharing information, it's about sharing your personality. Some of my favorite blogs are my favorites, not because of the subject matter they discuss, but because of how it's discussed. A blogger's voice, the person behind the words, that's what makes me read one blog over another.

So, today I'm sharing a few things with all of you about who I am.

Also, I think the best way to create a believable character is to truly know what makes a person who they are. It's easy to write a list of likes and dislikes. Which, is something many of us do when creating a character, but who they are goes deeper than that. Maybe finding out a little more about me will help you write deeper characters.

A doddle I doodled way back when

I have two dogs, that I love, but I think I might secretly be a cat person. I love my dogs. I do, but cats are so independent. They don't need to be taken for walks, and they certainly don't tug on the leash when they run after a squirrel.

My most prized possessions are not the things I've bought with my own money, but things that I couldn't have bought at all. My favorite things include a (perfectly seasoned) cast iron skillet, passed down to me from my great grandmother, and a stack of letters my boyfriend used to write me when we were first dating.

I don't want to be connected to social media 24/7. If it wasn't for my writing I probably wouldn't use social media at all. I don't think everyone needs to know what I'm doing every second of the day. I don't want my car and my phone and my Facebook and whatever else to all sync together. I don't want my GPS telling people where I am when I send out text messages. I'm not trying to hide anything, I just don't think it's anyone' business. (The only exception is my Kindle. I love that if I read something on my Kindle I can pick up in the same place on my smartphone the next day.)

I love being scared. I like horror movies, horror as a book genre, and just scary stuff all around. I grew up reading Stephen King, and though I really enjoy writing YA, I would love to write something dark and terrifying (and may have something like that in the works).

In my day job I work in youth services with at risk kids and teens. I would love to work full time as a writer, but since that isn't quite paying the bills yet, what I do now feels like the next best thing. I have a BA in Psychology and spend my days working with kids who either have cognitive disabilities or behavioral problems, and I love what I do.

I hate peanut butter cookies. Love peanut butter, love cookies, hate when the two come together. Honestly, I don't know what that's all about. I've just disliked them ever since I was a kid, and there's a lot of things I used to dislike as a kid that I've grown to enjoy, but peanut butter cookies just aren't one of them.

I truly enjoy reading indie books. I don't just support indie books because I'm an indie author and I want you to buy my books. I honestly enjoy reading indie books and try to make an effort to read just as many indies as I do traditionally published books.

I think I was born in the wrong era. I think I should have been born in the late sixties / early seventies. I hate Reality TV, I'd rather watch M*A*S*H. I'd trade 90% of the music they play on the radio to listen to The Stones or The Doors. There is no movie in existence that quite captures the drama of high-school like 80's flicks such as The Breakfast Club, or 16 Candles; and, well, you already read about how I feel about being connected to social media.