Thirteen Thursday with Natalie Whipple

 Today, I'm really excited to have Natalie Whipple, YA author and blogger. If you follow this blog often, then you'll know that I like to link her because the things she says about writing...spot on. It was fun to get to interview her and I hope you enjoy it.  Welcome to Thirteen Thursday!

If you were an item on a Mexican restaurant menu, what would you be and 

Wow, I can honestly say no one has ever asked me that before. Can I just be the whole menu? I haven't met a type of Mexican food I didn't like, and I suppose I'm kind of like that. I try to find the good in eerything. 

What is the scariest thing you have experienced?
I won't go into details, but probably the birth of my son. His heart rate began to drop at one point, and the thought of losing him was pretty terrifying. Luckily, things worked out okay. I took most of the damage instead, and it was a pretty rough recovery

If you could have dinner with one person—dead or alive—who would it be and why?

Honestly, I'd kill to just go out to dinner with my husband more often. I really like hanging out with him, and it seems like we can never get away enough. Of course, I guess that's not a bad thing, to feel like you still don't get enough of the person you love. 

If you were writing a book about your life, what would the title be?

9 Ways To Walk The Line Between Sanity And Certifiable

What are your six favorite books and why?

 Six? Man, it always depends on my mood. I guess I'll go with The Giver, Catherine Called Birdy, Emma, Into The Wild Nerd Yonder, The Absolute True Diary of a Part-time Indian, and Paranormalcy. 

I love your blog. It has been so helpful and sometimes, I read something that is so relevant to where I am. I even have a post somewhere begging you to be my friend. (don’t look!) Why did you start blogging?

Ha, you're funny. (And now of course I have to look...) I started blogging to keep myself accountable to writing (that, and writing was taking over my family blog and I felt bad). For some reason, when I wrote out my goals and struggles it helped me get through them. Of course, the reason I blog now has changed some, but I still enjoy it. I wouldn't do it otherwise!

Tell us your journey to writing. 

Wow, I don't know. It's wasn't some huge moment or whatever. I've always liked to write, and one day I decided I'd really try. And not only really try, but keep trying even when it got hard. I decided I should at least see what happens, that I wouldn't be happy with my life if I didn't try to make that dream come true. 

So I try. I don't know what'll happen or when, but I try.

What has been the “best” part of this life as a writer?

Friends, hands down. I never really belonged anywhere. I always had a few friends, but mostly they'd move on to other friends when our activities changed or whatever. I never fought with friends...they just kind of left me. And I suppose I let them leave because I didn't feel like I belonged with their new friends, etc.

But now I feel like I have friends I could potentially have for the rest of my life. No matter how hard this journey is, that's something I try to remember. 

What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview? How would you answer that question?

Ha, you ask as if I sit around imagining how I'll answer Matt Lauer's interview questions when I'm on the Today Show...no, I've never fantasized over that...

I can't really think of anything now that you ask though! Why is that? Maybe because I'm way over that fantasy. I've lowered my standards a lot. I'd be happy for the day when someone asks:

"When is your book coming out?" And I can actually give them a real answer, an actual date. That would be super nice.

 Do you have a writing process? If so, what is it like.
 Basically, I write some stuff. I try to write every weekday until the book is finished. Then I give it to people, who tell me how to fix it. Then I fix it. Then more people tell me what's wrong with it. Rinse and repeat. 

You are a really great artist! Does the affect the way you write? (like being able to draw your characters…)
 I think it does affect my stories in ways. Anime (and even RPG video games like Final Fantasy) has probably had more influence on my stories than, say, traditional books (hmm, maybe I should be writing that instead...). When I think of my childhood, sure, I think of Narnia and Little House on the Prairie and such. But I also think of Sailor Moon, Dragonball Z, Escaflowne, Evangelion, Fushigi Yuugi, Utena, etc. There's no way anime hasn't influenced my writing.

I'm not sure if it's a good or bad thing, though. Anime tends to be more accepting of "out there" stuff, of blending comedy and drama, action and romance. Sometimes I feel like my fiction doesn't fit in the right boxes because of that. 

You are a big supporter/promoter of crit groups. How does a crit group differ from a beta reader?
They don't! A crit group is just what I call all my betas combined (like Captain Planet!). Actually, not all my betas even read for each other—they kind of have their own groups. I'm just one part of theirs, and they are one part of mine. 

You dole it out daily on your blog, but what is the biggest piece of advice that you would give to aspiring writers?
If you really want it, keep trying. The game isn't easy, but it doesn't end until you put down the controller.

Thanks Natalie. She's so great! Make sure you are connected with her blog, where she talks about all things writing and revision, publishing, anime and shares some great pictures.