Aspiring Author Matthew MacNish-The King of the QQQE

And when I say King of the QQQE, I mean that if you haven't checked out Matthew's query critiques over at his blog, The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment, you should join the fun. He gives great advice.

 This is Matthew MacNish. Although some of you might recognize him more from this picture.

 It rocks too. Really. Holding a child is always great and holding a light saber is serious business. Here's the 'about Matthew' blurb from his blog.

I'm the father of two beautiful young ladies, three lazy cats and one adorable German Shepard. Together we live in the mountains of north Georgia amidst my endless collection of vinyl records. I run this blog in an attempt to help other novice writers avoid the mistakes I made in the beginning of my road to publication. Believe me, I made many.

And isn't it great that he's letting us learn from his mistakes? I stumble enough on my own so I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to learn from others. 

So Matthew, how long have you been writing?

Well I've always loved to write. I wrote stories, essays, and even poetry all throughout school, but then when I got into my twenties, I gave up on it. I only started writing again, when I decided to write a novel, about two years ago. 

What made you want to write?

I wanted to tell a story that wasn't being told in any of the books I was reading. 

(Good reason.)

If you could pick the setting of one book to live in, which would it be?

Hmm. That's a tough one. I've always loved Tolkien, so I would probably pick Middle Earth, but it would have to be the fourth age, because before Frodo destroys the Ring it's a very scary place. 

(Very true. Tolkien created quite the world to live in. That would definitely be an adventure.)

Do you have any pet peeves while writing?  

Pretty much any distraction. Unlike most people I can't listen to music while I write, but somehow I can manage to write with a baseball game on the TV in the background. As long as it's muted.

(I hear ya. If there's something on that has words or a rhythm that can get stuck in my head and chase away my muse, it doesn't work. I can write through a kids show or my husband's video games but not music.)

Quick, you only have a few minutes on the web. Which blogs or websites would you have to visit?

This is another tough one. I guess the two main blogs I could never do without are: Nathan Bransford's and Bryan Russell's The Alchemy of Writing.

(Awesome! Thanks for the links :)) 

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

Tolkien, Cormac McCarthy, and Andrew Smith.

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

I actually can't eat many sweets, because I have very sensitive teeth, and sugar makes them hurt, but I do love some Sour Patch Kids, or Starburst.

 (Here, have some! That's great that you let your sensitive teeth stop you. I just live through the pain. But if you ever whip out the Sour Patch Kids, I'm so there! Either sharing with you or taking them and making a run for it. I get kind of greedy when it comes to that candy. Just sayin'. :))

Thank you Matthew for answering my questions. Everyone else can find Matthew here. I suggest you do too, it's a great place to learn and find new writing friends :)

Have a great weekend and good luck with all your writing adventures.