Welcome to Cheri's 20 Questions! My interviewee today is the amazing Susan Kuchinskas.  Susan is the author of Chimera Catalyst (Pandamoon Publishing, 2017), a science fiction/detective novel mashup that takes place in near-future California. She works as a technology journalist and often extrapolates from current science and tech breakthroughs. She also wrote The Chemistry of Connection: How the Oxytocin Response Can Help You Find Trust, Intimacy and Love(New Harbinger, 2009), and writes erotica under the pen name Lynx Canon.

Tell us a little something about what you write: I like to mash up genres: My 2017 Pandamoon novel, Chimera Catalyst, and its upcoming sequel, with the working title of Singularity Syndrome, are science fiction/detective novels that take place in a near-future California. I've been writing neo-noir stories lately, soon to be published in the anthologies Faultlines and Switchblade. I also wrote The Chemistry of Connection: How the Oxytocin Response Can Help You Find Trust, Intimacy and Love. I work as a technology journalist and content specialist for tech companies, and that's an excellent pipeline for science fiction ideas. 

Interview Questions:
Cheri: What is the first book that made you cry?  

Susan: Maybe Winnie the Pooh? I had the original editions, written in the 1920s. They are quite literary and different from the Disney cartoon version. When I was a kid, I didn't get all the subtext, but when I reread them as a tween, the bittersweet ending, when Christopher Robin has to grow up and leave the magical forest and his bear, just killed me.

Cheri: Does writing energize or exhaust you?  

Susan: I'm afraid it tires me—although I have learned to quit before I get exhausted. I wish I was one of those people who "just have to write." I want to write, and I love having written. I am still learning to manage that balky part of me that says, "I just don't feel like it." Sometimes the writing part of my brain feels like a teenager whom I'm nagging to do a chore. I have tried bribing myself with M&Ms, but the best tactic I've found is promising myself I only need to do X number of words or write for Y amount of time and then I can stop.

Cheri: If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?  

Susan: Just keep writing; but, what's even more important, connect with other writers. It's that juice that flows between people when you share your work and theirs, your writing process, your hopes and fears, that invigorates your own work. And having those genuine connections will make it easier if you want to publish. You'll have true friends who want to support you by blurbing, writing reviews, introducing you to agents. Writing doesn't have to be lonely.

Cheri: How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?  

Susan: It helped me to stick to it. It made creative writing less separate from my day-job writing, made me feel more "professional" about it.

Cheri: What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?  

Susan: That has to be getting my first real computer, a Mac. I have really terrible handwriting. I've got a couple travel journals that I literally cannot read. And, I find it physically uncomfortable to write. But I'm an excellent typist. Being able to write fast and, even better, move things around on the screen, takes the most awful labor out of the process. 

Cheri: What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?  

Susan: I was bullied cruelly when I was in fifth and sixth grade. My teachers would humiliate me in front of the class and, as I realize now, tacitly incite the other kids to do the same. Unfortunately, this was the power of language used against me. And it's made it very difficult for me to speak up. Even now, in certain situations, that gets triggered. These days, I try to throw praise around as much as I can, because I've learned that we all need it, crave it. It's the best way to help people succeed.

Cheri: What’s your favourite under-appreciated novel?  

Susan: I'm not allowed to say Chimera Catalyst, right? Okay, then Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris. Yes, it was a huge movie and a best seller when it was published. It has a huge, juicy story. But what might be underappreciated is Harris' characters. There are no spear carriers in this book. Everyone has a compelling backstory and a subplot that's resolved at the end. And, if you read closely, he even has compassion for the serial killer, who, like all serial killers, suffered abuse as a child.

Cheri: As a writer, what would you say is your mascot/avatar/spirit animal? 

Susan: I have a wonderful garden, and I'm always sneaking out to watch what's going on. Sometimes it's the bees; right now, it's the drama of the monarch caterpillars on the milkweed. So maybe my spirit animal is … insects?

Cheri: How many published, unpublished, and half-finished books do you have?  

Susan: Hah. I have three unpublished novels and a memoir sitting around. I actually think they're pretty good, but agents and publishers have disagreed. With all the tools to self-publish and distribute your work, there is no excuse for my not getting them out into the world. Then, I have three published books, one from the 1990s about mobile apps for business; Chemistry of Connection; and Chimera Catalyst.I just finished the sequel to Chimera,Singularity Syndrome. So, I have absolutely no unfinished books! Weird feeling that doesn't come too often.

Cheri: What does literary success look like to you?  

Susan: Sometimes, nothing less than the New Yorker will do. Other times, I am so grateful that someone has read something I've written. It's very hard not to compare myself to others. I need to dance that line between ambition—the drive to do better, which is important—and envy, which can kill creativity.

Cheri: What do you feel is the best way to market your books? 

Susan: Facebook has been a great tool. I don't do Facebook ads, but just participating and letting people know about what I'm doing. Pandamoon Publishing, my publisher, does a lot of organic Twitter promotion. It's hard for me to get a sense of how that works. I did a lot of outreach to book bloggers and reviewers, and I think that is a very important way to spread the word.

Cheri: What kind of research do you do, and how much time do you typically spend researching before beginning a new book?  

Susan: I have a mental ideas file and, if I'm actually working on a book, I'll incorporate news items or research as it comes up. Singularity Syndrome is about artificial intelligence and the microbiome—the community of organisms that live in the human gut. So, I tracked news about that research, as well as keeping an eye on the constant news about AI. And Google is a wonderful thing. As I write, I'll look stuff up.

Cheri: How do you select the names for your characters?  

Susan: I work as a journalist, so I get tons of press releases and also read a lot of niche news in the tech sector. As I read these, I collect interesting or resonant names and paste them into a file. I'll mix and match the first and last names, so that I'm not using any one person's real name. However, when I started Chimera Catalyst, I didn't do that: I used a real person's first and last name for the character of Miraluna Rose. After it was accepted by Pandamoon Publishing, I asked that person if it was okay. She wasn't comfortable with it, so I came up with Miraluna Rose which has similar rhythm and vowels, plus the same evocative flavor.

Cheri: Do you hide secrets (or Easter Eggs) in your books for people to find?  

Susan: There are references that only some people will get. For example, in Singularity, I named an AI Mercredi, which is an homage to Delay in Transit, a science fiction story from the 1950s by F.L. Wallace. His protagonist has a personal assistant that's like a modern smartphone. Only he's the only one who has one, and it's embedded in his skull. to His AI is named Dimanche, which is French for Sunday. Mercredi is French for Wednesday.

Cheri: What was your hardest scene to write?  

Susan: There's a battle scene in Singularity. This is completely new for me. When I'm watching a movie, I tend to zone out during the chases or battles. I read a few articles on how to write a battle and tried to visualize it as a movie.

Cheri: What is the most difficult part of your artistic process? 

Susan: Plot, baby! I always have a good sense of the overall arc of a novel, who the characters will be, how it will end. But I struggle with getting from point A to point Z. I know that every scene needs to be there for a reason—ideally, two or three reasons. But … what, where?????? Chimera and my second book in the series, with the working title of Singularity Syndrome, follow the detective novel format. But this can be very … formulaic, if the detective just goes from witness to witness. I keep rereading Raymond Chandler. That's usually his simple plot, but it's his ability to show character and evoke place in just a few words that makes his work so stunning.

Cheri: How long, on average, does it take you to write a book? 

Susan: Usually about a year, although I often have a hiatus—um, writer's block—during that period. If I can write a thousand words a day, several days a week, I am really happy with myself.

Cheri: What is your favourite childhood book?  

Susan: I really don't know how to answer that. I read constantly from the time I was four. I mean, constantly. I don't remember my parents reading to me, although I know they did. As soon as I could, I started devouring books. So that early reading is a blur. I do remember crying during Bambi, but doesn't everyone?

Cheri: Where/when do you find yourself most inspired? 

Susan: Oddly enough, it's often when I'm at a lecture or conference presentation. Maybe because the presentation occupies the analytical part of my brain, allowing the intuitive part to run free. I have all sorts of interesting ideas while I'm listening to someone. When it comes to things like plot points or story problems, sometimes the answer pops into my head during physical activity, like gardening or walking the dog.

Cheri: Lastly, do you have any advice for aspiring writers? 

Susan: Keep going. Do not be afraid. Share your work only with people who will support you. Not everyone will like what you wrote. Not everyone likes anything. Ann Rice supposedly submitted Interview with the Vampire to literally hundreds of agents before getting signed. Keep going.

Cheri: Thank you so much for answering my questions, Susan; it's been a pleasure having you! 

Check out Susan's Amazon Page here.

Come back next Thursday for another edition of Cheri's 20 Questions!

 
Welcome to a special edition of Cheri's 20 Questions! My interviewee today is the incredibly talented and prolific Alisse Lee Goldenberg. Welcome! Alisse is an award winning author of Horror, Young Adult Paranormal Romance, and Young Adult Fantasy fiction. She is currently working on four series: The Sitnalta Series, The Children of Colonodona, The Dybbuk Scrolls, and The Bath Salts Journals (co-authored with An Tran). She has her Bachelors of Education and a Fine Arts degree, and has studied fantasy and folk lore since she was a child. Alisse is also a screenwriter and playwright living in Toronto with her husband Brian, and their triplets Joseph, Phillip, and Hailey.​

Tell us a little something about what you write:  I am a writer of Young Adult Fantasy novels and Horror Fiction. I currently have four series out with Pandamoon Publishing: The Sitnalta Series, The Children of Colonodona, The Bath Salts Journals, and The Dybbuk Scrolls.




Interview Questions:
Cheri: What is the first book that made you cry?  


Alisse: The first book that ever made me cry was Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maude Montgomery. It was also one of the first books I truly remember reading to myself, and I was surprised at how deeply a novel could make a person feel.


Cheri: Does writing energize or exhaust you?  


Alisse: When I am truly into a story that inspires me, I find that writing can energize me. But there are times when it can be quite difficult, where I can be stuck on a part of a story, and I need to work hard to get the words out on paper. Then, writing can be quite exhausting.


Cheri: If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?  


Alisse: I would tell myself not to give up, to press on and persevere. I would tell myself that anything was possible, and to reach for the stars.


Cheri: How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?  


Alisse: Honestly, it hasn’t. If anything has changed it, it has been having kids! Now I have to schedule my work around them, so I predominantly write at night, after they go to bed, or when they’re at school.


Cheri: What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?  


Alisse: It was on a fancy moleskin notebook. It has a lovely pink cover, and fits perfectly in my purse. I tend to do a lot of my first draft writing by hand, and do a lot of my first edits as I transcribe it onto my laptop.


Cheri: What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?  


Alisse: When I was younger, before I learned to read, I would stack books as high as I could and take them to my parents demanding that they be read to me. I was always on a quest for more stories. There was a library not too far from my home, and I would be taken there by bus. I would check out as many books as my little arms could carry. At the time, my obsession was Curious George stories, or Amelia Bedelia. The sheer amount of imagination and fun those stories held for me was amazing. I could spend hours in that library surrounded by those books.


Cheri: What’s your favourite under-appreciated novel?  


Alisse: Under-appreciated? I’m not sure it qualifies, but O.R. Melling’s novel The Hunter’s Moon has been one of my favourite books forever! I’ve read it more times than I can count. It’s such a beautiful story of adventure, love, and family. The main character of Gwen goes on a fantastic journey of self exploration and finding her own inner strength. I just adore it.


Cheri: As a writer, what would you say is your mascot/avatar/spirit animal? 


Alisse: Besides a big mug of coffee? But really, I’d say that my mascot has to be a puppy. Always chasing some new idea, easily distracted, and loving to be curled up on the couch!


Cheri: How many published, unpublished, and half-finished books do you have?  


Alisse: I currently have eleven published books, five in the completed Sitnalta Series, three is The Dybbuk Scrolls Trilogy, one in The Bath Salts Journals, and two in The Children of Colonodona Series. I’m currently at work on book three in The Children of Colonodona, and I’m planning a book set in The Dybbuk Scrolls universe.


Cheri: What does literary success look like to you?  


Alisse: For me, literary success means that people are reading my work and that they’re responding to it. The beauty of art, and for me, writing is definitely art. It’s subjective. People don’t have to necessarily like what I write to respond to it. If my words enact some sort of emotional response, it’s succeeded. Now, I’d love for everyone who reads my books to like them and to want to follow my characters on their journeys. That would be wonderful.


Cheri: What do you feel is the best way to market your books? 


Alisse: Honestly, most days I’m still trying to figure out the magic equation to that one! But I think that social media is a growing and effective tool for that. It’s just a matter of reaching the audience through the noise on all the channels you use as an author.


Cheri: What kind of research do you do, and how much time do you typically spend researching before beginning a new book?  


Alisse: That depends which series I’m working on. With both Sitnalta and the sequel series The Children of Colonodona, since I created those worlds myself, and the characters within, the only research I do is within my own writing, ensuring that I’ve kept a continuity that makes sense within the rules of my world. With The Dybbuk Scrolls it was more complicated. That world was firmly set within Jewish mythology and folklore. I wanted to be certain I got things right and was respectful of the history there. When writing those books I spent a long time poring over old stories and books, researching and taking notes on all I wanted to include. It was a process that lasted years through the writing process of those novels.


Cheri: How do you select the names for your characters?  


Alisse: In the world of Colonodona I fixated on sounds. Quite a few of the characters are words, or places turned backwards because I liked the sounds. The sound of it seemed to fit the image I had of the character in my mind. In the world of Hadariah, many of the characters’ names have meaning that lend themselves to who they are. For instance, Rebecca is a biblical name meaning “to tie, or join”, while Carrie is a diminutive of the masculine Charles, meaning “warrior”.


Cheri: Do you hide secrets (or Easter Eggs) in your books for people to find?  


Alisse: I do. I seed little hints of what’s to come throughout the books, so that readers of the whole series can go back and see how things were almost inevitable for the characters.


Cheri: What was your hardest scene to write?  


Alisse: The hardest scene to write was probably the epilogue of the Song of War. For me that’s the end of The Dybbuk Scrolls Trilogy. As the most personal story for me, coming to the end of it was bittersweet. I had put my characters through quite a lot, and the ending was a catharsis for them, and to end it was hard for me to do.


Cheri: What is the most difficult part of your artistic process? 


Alisse: Definitely the editing part. I’m my own worst critic. Going through it all and finding my mistakes is tough, and I’m always second guessing the words I put on the page.


Cheri: How long, on average, does it take you to write a book? 


Alisse: I typically can type out a first draft in a month or two. Then I need another couple of months to do my personal edits before I turn the manuscript in to my publisher.


Cheri: What is your favourite childhood book?  


Alisse: I have to divide this in two. My favourite picture book for kids is definitely Robert Munsch’s Paperbag Princess. My favourite novel is A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I’ve read both to my own kids, sharing the stories with them. Nightly family book time is something that’s very important to us, and we go through so many books over the course of the year. Currently we’re reading through Small Steps by Louis Sachar, a request by them since they loved Holes.


Cheri: Where/when do you find yourself most inspired? 


Alisse: I’m now a predominately night writer, since that’s when it’s easiest for me to find the time to write. I think I’ve become used to it at this point, so the ideas seem to follow me to this hour. If I have ideas at other times in the days, I carry my notebook with me!


Cheri: Lastly, do you have any advice for aspiring writers? 


Alisse: Just put the pen to paper and write! Everyone has a story to tell. Get it out there and tell it. And whatever you do, don’t give up or let anyone silence your voice.


Cheri: Thank you so much for answering my questions, Alisse; it's been a pleasure having you! Later this month the amazing Susan Kuchinskas will be joining us, so stay tuned!