Won’t You Be My Neighbor—Dax

I have a ground breaking interview today. One of my favorite people in the world, Chantele Sedgwick, is letting me interview a character from her awesome book—Not Your Average Fairy Tale.

So will everyone give a warm virtual welcome to Dax :)

Dax: Thanks for having me, Ms. Cothran. It's a pleasure. You obviously have good taste.

Angie: Dax, call me Angie. We aren't that formal here. I'm so glad you agreed to come and talk with me today, because I have all kinds of questions for you. Let’s start out easy and ease into the harder ones.

Your magical world is pretty cool. What is your favorite part about it?

Dax: I'm actually not the biggest fan. Everyone is too goody goody there. And anywhere Ash Summerland is, I'd rather not be. Things are more interesting in the human world. I can actually use my magic without anyone breathing down my neck.

Angie: That's interesting. Then tell me what you like most about the human world.

Dax: I feel powerful in the human world. Since human's are all the same, powerless and predictable, I have a lot of fun when I'm there. It's easy to get inside their heads and freak them out. Call it a hobby I guess.

Angie: Powerless and predictable, huh. I won't take that as an insult :)

Here's a harder one. In your dealings with Ash and even Kendall, you come across as the "bad guy." Do you feel like you are the bad guy, or just misunderstood?

Dax: Oh, stereotypes. Don't you love them? I'm a good guy, naturally. Ever since I've been at the Academy though, Ash and I have had our differences. When we disagree, I'm always the one in trouble and Ash never gets punished for anything he does. Now that Ash has Kendall though, it's a whole different ball game. He actually cares about someone else. Which could be fun in the future. 

So, in answer to your question, you always have to have a villain, and I guess I play the part well when it comes to him. I'm darker by nature, but not pure evil. I can be good too if I want to be. The opportunity just hasn't presented itself yet.

Angie: So you are just a bit complicated. I can identify with that.

Okay Dax, I want you to be really honest with your answer here. What do you want more than anything else in the world?

Dax: A friend. It sounds lame, I know, and I come off as a loner that wants to be alone, but I would really like someone to relate to. Who understands me.

Angie: Dax, you're breaking my heart :( Have you ever thought being nicer would get you what you want?

Dax: Believe me. When you have my reputation, people won't take me serious if I all of a sudden change personalities. You know what I mean?

Angie: I do. But maybe you can try it by small degrees, then maybe it won't be such a shock to people. Sorry I didn't mean for this to turn into a therapy session :)

How about a lighter question. Besides harassing Ash and messing with unsuspecting humans, what do you like to do for fun? What are your hobbies?

Dax: Thank you for the subject change. I don't talk about my personal problems very often. If ever. Um... as for hobbies? I'm a big fan of skateboarding. Random, I know. I also like to draw. 

Angie: I love to draw too! Did you feel that little connection we had there?

Normally I would give you a beauty pageant question, something super hard but you've been so great about opening up I thought we could play a little word association game instead. I'm going to give you 5 words and I want you to tell me the first thing that comes to your mind. Then I might ask a little follow up question.

Fairy

Red

Gummy Bear

Season

Alligator

Dax: Fairy - Ash. Ha ha.

Red - Blood

Gummy Bear - I prefer Gummy Worms.

Season - Winter

Alligator - Teeth

Angie: Gummy Worms? Why? They are basically long gummy bears.

Dax: I have no idea. Gummy worms just taste better. Mixture of flavors maybe?

Angie: Dax, you were awesome today. I just want you to know that you really surprised me at the end of the book. I didn't see that epilogue coming! Just a little friendly advice from me to you--revenge never works out how you have it planned. I want to see you get that friend :)

Dax: Thank you, Angie. It was a pleasure being here. And hopefully I will surprise you in the next book.

Angie: I hope so too!

Thanks for letting us meet Dax, Chantele. If you want to check out Not Your Average Fairy Tale (and I totally recommend you do :) Try these links.

ChanteleSedgwick—Author blog

Goodreads

Amazon

Love you to pieces, Chan!

-Angie

Hip Hip Hooray Chantele!

I’ve been drowning in packing boxes and tape, but I had to dig myself out to join in the grand reveal for Chantele Sedgwick’s new book! It comes out August 1^st so mark your calendars.

Blurb: 
Ash Summerland has it all–good looks, popularity, and the best grades at The Academy of Magical Beings. Ready to complete his last assignment in order to graduate, Ash is confident he will get the apprenticeship he wants. When he opens the letter from the Council, he is shocked to discover he has been assigned to apprentice Lady Shenelle, Keeper of Happy Endings. A.K.A. the head fairy godmother. Ash is forced to grant three wishes to a troubled human girl named Kendall, and ultimately give her a "happy ever after". But Kendall turns out to be more than he bargained for. Still grieving over her father's death, Kendall doesn't want anything to do with him. And worst of all, she doesn't believe in happy endings.

What I’m Excited About:

Everything! I can’t wait to read it. And I’m so excited for Chantele! Yay. Yay. Yay.
You should also stop by and check it out on Goodreads :)

Now back to packing. Sigh. But I’m almost done and then I’ll be back to blogging :)

-Angie

Won’t You Be My Neighbor—Chantele Sedgwick

Alrighty people do I have a surprise for you! The always kind, never grouchy, eternally helpful, superwoman ChanteleSedgwick is here today! Do you feel lucky? I do. So welcome Chantele...

Chantele: Wow! Thanks for the warm welcome! I totally wish I were superwoman! Ha ha!

Angie: You are superwoman! You can juggle babies, write books, and leap over laundry in a single bound! Okay, I'll stop embarrassing you :) 

First real question...It's really a double question...What is your favorite thing about yourself (don't be modest)? And what would you change about yourself if you could?

Chantele: So ... My favorite thing about myself? Oh, crap. Um ... I think my determination is one thing I like. If I want something bad enough, I won't give up. (I guess there comes a point when I should, but ... you know.) And something I'd change would be how critical I am about my writing. I'll never ever think I'm good enough, and I wish I could be more positive about it. :)

Angie: I think most people can't look at their own writing objectively. We either love it or hate it. I go back and forth too. Sometimes I think it's total crap and consider destroying it (but I don't). Have you ever done that?

Chantele: ALL the time. I don't really throw anything away though. I just move on to something else. Or let the "crap" settle for a while and then go back to it later and figure out what's wrong with it. It's usually not as bad as I thought it was. Surprisingly. But sometimes it's ten times WORSE than I thought it was! Ha ha. :)

Angie: Hehehe :) That is NEVER a good realization.

Next question...I know you will yell at me and tell me this is impossible to answer, but give it your best shot. What fiction book has taught you the most about writing? I will be a little lenient and let you pick one author if you must :)

Chantele: Oh, freak. Seriously? I really want to pick two. And they aren't really books, more of the authors that taught me the most. Sorry, I'm cheating. ;)

The first one, and you guys will roll your eyes at me for saying this, but the author who made me realize I could write while raising my kids, was Stephenie Meyer. I'm not saying she's the best writer, I just admire her for putting herself out there and making me realize I could do the same.

The other one is J.K. Rowling. She was able to create such an amazing world out of nothing. Reading her books are like magic. They pull you in, keep you there and it feels like you're part of Harry's world. It takes an AMAZING author to do that. I'm still in awe of her writing. And I can read her books again and again and again and still find new things in them.

There are so many things we can create as writers. A whole world of possibilities, which is what makes writing so much fun and rewarding. Hopefully that made sense... my pregnant brain isn't working lately

Angie: You are such a cheater...but I will let it slide. I love J.K. too! I can read anything she writes. I am also with you on Stephanie Meyer. I've had a few complaints about the last books, but I still love her. I never realized until reading her that you didn't need a writing degree to become a published author (I'm slow I know). I felt like an entire world opened up to me when I realized that.

Chantele: We were slow together, because I thought you needed a writing degree too! Ha ha. Great minds think alike. ;)

Angie: You said it! 

I'm feeling like a fun question...If you had to lose one of your five senses, which one would you pick and why?

Chantele: My sense of smell. I couldn't stand not hearing my kids sweet voices. Or seeing them. And I could do without smelling certain things. ;)

Angie: I think I could do without hearing my sweet children :) I have a VERY chatty seven year old!

Chantele: Ha! I already have selective hearing. ;)

Angie: What did you say? Ha! Me too :)

So you've had a big year already. You split with your agent, found a publisher who loves your books and now you are on your way to having a real live book in your hands. * Squeal* I'm so excited. Other than the time it has taken to get here, what has been the hardest thing and the easiest for  you?

Chantele: That's a tough question, but I think the hardest thing so far was splitting with my agent. I mean, I had an AGENT. There are so many writers who would have loved to be in my position. But it all came down to what was best for me and my books. It was really the hardest decision I've ever had to make in my writing journey. But, I don't regret it. Not one bit.

The easiest thing for me, has been not giving up. If that makes any sense. I want to be an author so bad and I've worked so hard to get this far. Surprisingly I haven't wanted to give up. Which is weird. Usually I give up on lots of stuff. LOL! But I knew writing was something I couldn't stop. I have too many stories in my head to throw it all away. It's a part of me now. And a part of me that I'm proud of. :)

And SQUEE for having a real live book in my hands! I still can't believe it.

Angie: It is so cool! How long have you been writing? And what made you start?

Chantele: I've been writing seriously since 2007 ... so about 5 years. I've had stories in my head for MUCH longer though. Since high school. I remember typing stories on my parents computer and making sure no one knew what I was doing. I don't know why I was embarrassed about it, but I was. I stopped writing for a while after that, but still had stories floating around.

After I had my second baby, I realized I needed to write them down. Seriously write instead of toy around with the idea. I had one particular character that wouldn't leave me alone, so I sat down and ended up writing  60,000 words in two months. It became my first YA novel. Which I still want to go back and re-write. Once I finished that one I started another one. And another. Now I'm on my 6th and still loving every minute of it. :)

Angie: Six! Wow! Sometimes I think it is easier to write one than to write more. Are you still a writer if you only write one?

Chantele: Of course! I think writing one book is a big accomplishment! Seriously. And each time I start a new book, I think, "There is no way I can write another book." But if you do it once, you can do it again. 

Angie: There is a moment when you think, "I can't duplicate that." But I think you are right. Tons of people say they are writing a book but never finish.

Alright, time for the pageant question :) Pretend you are on a stage with millions of people watching you (no pressure)...What is one thing the world would be better with more of? (You can't say reality T.V. or Vampire Diaries or chocolate ;)

Chantele: I was gonna pick chocolate, but that's a no go... Um ... I think one thing the world would be better with more of, is optimism. Everyone is so negative all the time. If we were all more optimistic, people would be happier more often. :) And there can never be a shortage of awesome books in the world, either. ;)

Angie: I give you a ten for that answer :) And a standing ovation! My hubby is excessively optimistic. I think I can count on both hands the times I've seen him really down.

And more great books? Yes please!!!

One last fast question...Will you give us all a little hint of what new book you are currently working on. Give us a premise or fun character detail or even better a hook sentence :)

Chantele: The new book I'm working on, is actually the sequel to my Fairy Tale book. So, I won't spoil any of that. ;) I'm also working on a YA sci fi (I think ... ) about a girl who's dad is the FBI director and uses her gift of hypnosis to put criminals away. She isn't sure if the criminals are innocent or not and has to decide who the bad guys really are. That's the best way I can explain it. Haha. :) 

Angie: I'm so excited for your first book and the sequel! And how cool does the FBI book sound? Awesomeness!!!

Thanks so much for answering my insane questions :) You were brilliant!!!

Chantele: Thanks SO much for having me, Angie!! You are the best!

Chantele is so much fun :) Everyone can check out Chantele’sbook on Goodreads. Thanks everybody for stopping by.

-Angie