Come Meet Chantele Sedgwick.

  This is Chantele Sedgwick.  I recently met her through the Writer's Crusade, and I'm so glad I did meet her.  She's awesome!  If you visit her blog, you'll find this...

I am a wife, mother of three silly kids, a harp player and an avid reader of books. I enjoy reading and writing YA fantasy and paranormal. I'm repped by Uwe Stender at TriadaUS literary and am working to get my books published. If that ever happens you will be the first to hear about it! :)

It's totally gonna happen and I can't wait to read her book!  Isn't it so awesome that she has an agent?  I may or may not be absolutely jealous, but really mostly happy for her.  It seems like finding the agent is one of the most frightening parts of becoming a published author.  It's fun to read about those who have had success.  I'll post a link to Chantele's agent story after the interview.

Let's go ahead and start with the first question. :)

Chantele, How long have you been writing?  

I've always had stories in my head, ever since I was little. I started writing them down in high school, but ended up throwing everything away. (I sort of thought I was crazy...) I started seriously writing about three years ago and haven't looked back! :)

(I'm glad you picked your writing back up.  You weren't really crazy in High School, or maybe you secretly were...but aren't all of us? ;))

So, what made you want to write? 

I'm not really sure! lol. I've been a daydreamer since I was little, and I think I figured out I was supposed to be a writer after I had kids. When I found myself listening to the voices in my head, I knew it was time to write them down. I had so many stories, so many ideas, that I had to put them on paper. I love making up new worlds, and creating characters out of nothing. It's amazing and exhilarating. I would never go back to just daydreaming. I have a passion to write my words down now, and I love it. I hope someday I can share my stories with the world! Writing is a huge part of my life now and I'm so glad I made the decision to write my stories down. 

(Isn't it funny how we not only hear the voices in our heads, but start talking back to them? With kids around, sometimes those voices listen to me more than my kids do!) 

Do you have any pet peeves while writing?  

Hmmm. I don't think I have any pet peeves while I write, but I do wish I had more time to write.  I can't write until my kids go to bed at night, and sometimes it is so hard to wait. Also, I am an edit freak. I have a problem editing as I go, and it drives me insane. I'm learning to just write, but I think I'll always have the habit. It's okay though. It works for me, and I've found that my books improve because of it.

(I have the same problem.  Both of them.  The kids have to be in bed and I edit along the way.  The only thing that got me out of that was when I wrote the book in a month back in January.  There's no time to edit when you set a goal like that.)

If you could sit down and reread any book, which would it be?

 I love reading! Do I have to choose just one?  I loved The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, so I may have to choose that one. Or the Books of Bayern by Shannon Hale.  Or Harry Potter. I'm a huge fan of those books and they never get old. I love the Twilight Series as well.**Blushes** Don't judge me. ;) Can you tell I write YA? Love it.

(Those are all great ones!  Definitely at the top of my reread list.  And no blushing here...I think Twilight is one of the few books I have read more than once.)

Let's say you only had enough time to visit a couple of writing blogs a day, which would they be?

 Kiersten Writes would be my top writing blog. She is seriously hilarious. Midnight Meditations is a good one. They are twin sisters who do the blog together, and they are so funny! And Between Fact and Fiction by Natalie Whipple. (Don' you just love her last name?) Those are probably the ones I visit most.  I've also heard Perfecting the Craft is an awesome one, and I'll definitely be hanging out here now! :)

(Oh man, who's been lyin' to you now?  Haha. Note:  I did not bribe her to say that :)  I love Kiersten's blog and I've now visited the others.  Looks like a lot of fun!  Whipple is fun.  I had a friend with that last name growing up.) 

If you could meet any author, dead or alive, who would you choose? 

I'd love to meet J.K. Rowling. Seriously, Harry Potter changed the middle grade/ YA market so much.

What book are you reading right now and which one do you have lined up to read next? 

I'm reading The Dark and Hollow Places by Carrie Ryan right now. CREEPY! I have Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins up next! LOVED Hex Hall! 

And last, but not least, do you prefer fruity candy or chocolate? 

I'm a chocolate kind of girl. I'm not a huge fan of fruit. I'm a rather picky person.

(It's okay.  Everyone needs to be picky about something in life, right?)

You want a random fact about Chantele?  How about three :)

Random facts? Hmmm... I've played the harp for 21 years. I love to sing. I get most of my ideas for my books when I'm driving, or waiting to pick up my son from school. :) 

Thank you Chantele for answering my questions!  It was a blast getting to know more about you.  If you haven't visited Chantele's blog, you should go now.

And for those who want to read about Chantele's success in signing with her agent, you can read that here.

Have a great weekend!