First Place Winner (babydollvain) is Interviewed!

Check out her incredible gallery!

1. Do you remember why you first started writing? If so, do explain.

I have been writing for as long as I can remember. A lot of my earlier writing was just for school projects. My earlier poetry was highly restricted by project guidelines, so I'm not quite sure that counts. However, I was the reason that my fifth grade teacher put a limit to how much you could write for class "journal" entries when I literally wrote a novel about the adventures of our escaped class hamster. My interest in writing was revived during a poetry project that we did my sophomore year of high school. We had to write and collect poetry that met certain specifications. Up until that point I had never really realized that people wrote poetry for fun. I've been writing poetry ever since. As for prose, I've always been working on some novel or another, but I haven't really ever finished one. I'm really going to try to finish my current one though!

2. What medium do you write in most of all? Why is that?

Definitely Poetry. As for why, probably because it comes so effortlessly to me. A lot of the poetry I write is a way to express an emotion I'm feeling, or as a way for me to get an idea out. Sometimes, I find prose a little more demanding.

3. Does your life, your experiences or the people in your life have any impact on the subjects of your writings?

Oh, yes. All the time. More than some people realize. . .

4. What technical aspect of writing fascinates you most of all?

Description. I like to be able to see and feel what a writer is talking about, not just listen to story so to speak. Comparisons and good vocabulary usually aid that, but then there are always some things I'll find that go way over the top and just bog down in details, or use archaic words just to keep a rhyme scheme.

5. Is there any form of writing that you are particularly interested in learning?

I'd actually like to learn a bit about novel writing actually. I've always wanted to write novels, but I find it very difficult to actually get down to it. I'm great at coming up with ideas for them, but I definitely need some pointers on the technical aspects of writing prose, like planning and plot structure, etc.

6. Do you need inspiration in order to write or can you simply start jotting down whatever you like?

Both actually. A lot of my poetry is a stream of consciousness. Sometimes, when my life is particularly boring, or I just feel generally uninspired, but want to write still, I'll peruse a list of prompts that I have compiled.

7. Do you have any favorite authors/poets?

Well, when it comes to a lot of historic writers, I like some of their works, and don't care as much for others. One of my favorite poets of all time though is Robert Burns. Part of that is because I have a Scottish heritage, but mostly just because his romantic lyrics are just so beautiful. I like a lot of Walt Whitman's poetry as well. One of my favorite female writers is Emily Dickinson, even though I would have punctuated some of her poems differently, had I written them. I like J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter) and Suzanne Collins (The Hunger Games). However, I'd have to say that (at least for now,) my favorite prose writer is Ally Carter.

8. What about any favorite novels/poems?

For prose, I'd recommend "I'd Tell You I Love You, but then I'd Have to Kill You" and it's following series, as well as the Heist Society series, both written by Ally Carter. I also really like "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" and the series it belongs to, by Douglas Adams. I don't think people are really alive until they've read the Guide. It is a positively brilliant satire, and it is incredibly funny.
For poetry, I'd say that some of my top favorites are "A Red, Red Rose" by Robert Burns, "One Day I Wrote Her Name upon the Strand" by Edmund Spenser, "Earth" by John Hall Wheelock, and "i carry your heart with me" by e. e. cummings. Though, more often than not, I prefer reading other poets on dA than "famous" poems.

9. Do you have any advice to give to the writers reading this?

Avoid the cliche. Use a lot of good description. Employ your vocabulary to find the best words for the situation. Also literary devices, personification, hyperbole, synecdoche, allusions, and imagery for example, tend to make your work more alive. One of the most important things I can say is to use good grammar and punctuation. Especially punctuation! Maybe you got sick of hearing it from English teachers, but punctuation REALLY does matter. It can change the entire meaning of a sentence, and proper punctuation makes your work much easier and more enjoyable to read. I really don't think I can stress that enough.

10. Any new projects that you'd like to inform us about so that we can hunt down more of your brilliant work?

I'm so flattered! Well, I'm currently working on a prose project with a friend of mine. It's a modified letter game. If you're not sure what a letter game is, I definitely recommend you look it up and start one with a friend! They can be a lot of fun if you put the effort into it. I'm also working on conceptualizing a novel. I just need to find the time to write it. I've got a few bits and pieces written for it, (I've posted 3 teasers I believe.) I am constantly writing new poetry. If you haven't checked out my gallery before though, a lot of people seemed to enjoy a lot of my poems I've already written.