Interview with the Sweet and Charismatic Ch4rmed

This is an interview with Ch4rmed who is the author of the amazing The Guardians of Mustikos and the hilarious and cute, Almost Loved.  I probably asked more questions than strictly necessary (for some reason I kept thinking it was too short and kept adding more questions), but she was amazing about it. Enjoy! & Check her stories out if you haven't. 

What is your name, or what do you go by on Wattpad?

Mee, because that’s what it’s all about :)

How do you balance school/work with writing?

I don’t balance it LOL! Somehow all of my ideas come during midterm/finals week so that sucks LOL I’m always torn between writing or studying. Thank god I can retain info for short periods or else I’d really be screwed!

You do a TON of reading on Wattpad, how can you do that while writing your own book(s)?

I don’t think I do a lot of reading on wattpad! But I try really hard to keep up with people’s updates so I don’t fall 100 chapters behind. Key word here being try LOL I mean it doesn’t take too long to read, it’s just writing out the comments that take a while!

You have a superpower don't you?

Obviously! I have the power to meet fictional male characters and then because of that, reality sort of stinks sometimes.

What inspires you?

I don’t know what specifically inspires me

Do you write/read to music? If so, what kind?

I love writing to music! Not so much reading if I have to write comments but if it’s a published novel, definitely if the music suits the mood! I absolutely love instrumental music! Right now I’m just way obsessed with Hans Zimmer: Time and Jerry Goldsmith: Mulan’s Decision! It’s like the perfect piece to have in the background as you’re reading an intense chapter and it’s even better if you have to write an intense scene! Also, anything Danny Elfman and I’m gone LOL Gosh, he and Burton are like my favs!

Do you get writer's block? If so, how do you fight it?

I always get writers block! It’s so frustrating! I fight it with The Black Peal LOL! Depending on what scene I’m having issues with, I tend to do different things. For Almost Loved, I usually just leave it and I’ll go watch a few sit coms with my sisters or with a few girls and occasionally I’ll come up with a “a-ha” moment! For my stories like TGOM, definitely action based movies like The Avengers for instance haha It just gives me ideas for fight scenes because suddenly, I’m paying a lot of attention to the fight choreography and just picking up subtle techniques that can be put into my story.

Superman vs. Batman, who do you like better?

Oh no! How could you do this to me!? I totally loved what Nolan did with the Batman trilogy but Henry Cavill is the new Superman and he’s just too beautiful! Okay . . . if I had to choose . . .Batman. I don’t know why, maybe it’s because I love his villains! I mean there’s the Penguin and of course, the Joker, who is seriously the best villain ever! He’s smart, devious and just the perfect counterpart for Wayne, you know?

How did you start writing?

I’ve always liked writing but I’ve never finished a novel. Short stories for English classes, yes, but never something like TGOM. I think I only started to “write” when I created TGOM since that’s the only time I ever took an idea serious enough to create such a project out of it! Now that I’ve gotten a taste of what it’s like to write a novel, I can’t wait to revamp it!

Your stories hold their own in the rankings, what's your secret (if there is one)?

I have no idea why! It’s not as if I have a million fans or I have millions of reads on my stories! I just think I’m very lucky that my readers take the time to vote when I upload? I just write what I want to write and it’s just fortunate that it happens to be what people are okay with!

What do you dis/like about writing?

Putting things into words LOL! I’m not even kidding here! I usually picture out the scenes in my head like you would a movie and then when I’m writing it out, I’m trying not to use the same words over and over again but it’s hard! I mean I have it pictured perfectly in my head and it frustrates me when my writing doesn’t seem to convey the same image! The thesaurus is seriously my go to friend!

The stories you have posted are both in third person, is that a style preference or is there more behind it?

I think it’s a preference thing. I, like many people, have been really inspired by JK Rowling and I remember Harry Potter being in third person so that stuck with me! All the short stories I’ve written in the past were in third person so it just seemed natural to create my own story in that perspective. That and with first person, I swear I use ‘I’ way too often haha. I’m definitely not crossing that perspective off from future stories though! I’ll definitely give it a shot before I admit defeat!

Do you have a Canadian accent?

I don’t say “a-boot” for about if that’s what you’re wondering haha. Nothing like the accent Robin has in HIMYM x) That’s the accent East of Canada! Though my Irish friend says I have the Canadian accent though! I’ll post a video of myself one day and you guys can see for yourself!

Any recommendations of books on & off Wattpad?

Loving Wyvern’s Tale right now ;D And definitely Wildfire by AuRevoirSimone and Blue Revolution: The Sacrifices by AnnieGil. These girls are just so awesome in so many ways and their stories are mind boggling awesome :)

For off wattpad, I’ll say anything Ally Carter or Kate Brian! I totally fell in love with Andrea Cremer as well, but yesh, after the third book, not so much (I’m bitter!) For old school fantasy people, check out Tamora Peirce and Patricia C. Wrede!

How do you create characters, do they just pop up or is there a process?

It depends! I mean for Almost Loved, Leon just came to me when I saw Michael Urie on like one episode of Partners! He wasn’t even meant to be in the story, but I reworked the first chapter to put him in! My main characters do pop into my head, but it’s a working process because I really have to find their flaws and show character development throughout the story without making it seem super obvious like “Verity suddenly decided that she should stop being a bitch to all the vampires!” You know? That’s dumb LOL

How do you manage writing such long chapters?

I just write x) I usually have a scene in my head that I use as a template for the chapters! I’m working on it though, by dividing the scenes so it doesn’t feel like one chapter is a novel!

If I was tied to a railroad and Matt Bomer was also tied to the same railroad, but you could only choose ONE who would you save?

How did you know I have a ridiculous crush on Matt Bomer?! LOL Oh my gosh, I’d save you then throw myself over the tracks and repeat lines from Inception. “You're waiting for a train, a train that will take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you, but you don't know for sure. But it doesn't matter. How can it not matter to you where that train will take you?  Because you’ll be together!”

While you're one of the sweetest people ever, you must have pet peeves, care to share?

Aww you’re too sweet :3 I’m not sweet, trust me LOL! Reality television shows. Stuff like the housewives of wherever, 16 and way prego and toddlers and tiaras, that stuff is a no-no for me. I have never watched a single episode and I swear I never will. It’s just terrible how we reward people for exploiting their children or you know, showing “girls, if you’re rich, fabulous, and botoxed up, you can have a show! If that doesn’t work, remember, sex tapes are always a good thing.” I found out that the housewives of freaking Vancouver were on Top Chef Canada and it hurt me to watch that episode because of her. I remember when Jon Hamm, Daniel Craig and Jeremy Renner (love those men!) just called it out in an interview and didn’t even bother trying to backtrack what they said!  And those moms on the shows, just disgusting and so morally degrading.

Do you want to be a published author?

Absolutely! I would be beyond happy if I actually held in my hand, a physical copy of my story! It would mean that I’m doing something right and I didn’t have to rip open my vagina for success!

What is your dream job?

Definitely an author, but I would love to direct something! I would love to be the one calling the shots and telling people no or yes or if we have to redo a scene because the lighting and cameras were off!

Is there a story behind your username?

I needed one for Wattpad and had no idea what to use. We were actually rewatching Charmed, the TV series and so I just substituted the a for a 4 because it’s my sister’s favourite number!

Favorite movies?

Moulin Rouge  - Luhrmann, musical, McGregor. Nothing else I can ask for!

Inception – Nolan, Gordon-Levitt, DiCaprio, and a legit plot line that doesn’t assume everyone in the audience is a bimbo!

Corpse Bride – Burton, Depp and a storyline that just made me bawl like a baby!

Anything old school Disney like Lion King and Snow White!

Will Herondale or Jace?

Will with no questions asked! Jace was never someone I fawned over LOL Will has this wit that’s just endearing :)

Does your real life influence anything you write?

Definitely! I tweak it a bit so it’s not completely my life, but a lot of it is drawn on what I say on the phone to my friends or what we do during our outings. Even with my sisters and when we’re talking and I just quickly jot down funny that we said!

What was the first story you ever wrote?

Huh. Not sure. Might’ve been about a bee that went to jail because he took some honey money? LOL

Do your friends and/or family know about Wattpad? Would you let them read anything?

Mom, dad and sisters of course and only told the besties when I was halfway through TGOM! So in real like, only seven people know about wattpad ahah Sandy reads my stories, but Linda and Cindy aren’t into reading and I get it and am not offended in any way. They’re as encouraging as they can be and I love them for it :)

Is there someone that acts as your muse or helps you when you're in a rut?

Definitely my sisters, but aside from them, Caoimhe. She’s someone I met on wattpad @AuRevoirSimone) and we’ve become really close friends through emails and everything! She’s definitely so fun and easy to talk to when I’m in a rut. I really take her advice to heart and I try to work with it and it usually helps :)

What is your favorite flavor of pie?

Blueberry! Yums :d

Captain America and Captain Canada get in a fight, who wins? (Let's be real. Also, Chris Evans)

Captain North Korea actually LOL! Who the frick would be Captain Canada anyhow? Jim Carrey? LOL!

Is there a specific genre you like to read/ write in?

Nope! I’m very open to any genre, as long as I like the writing style and the storyline. I want to try writing in different genres before I figure out what I like doing. I definitely love fantasy because I’m practically god in that haha! I’m trying something without fantasy because I just like challenging myself with seeing how far I can go without becoming a static author. I definitely want to try my hand at writing a mystery murder novel though! I love solving riddles so it’ll be cool to think of riddles myself and see what it’s like on the other side!

Where do you see yourself in ten years?

I would want to have finished TGOM and have at least sent it to a publisher! Definitely want a steady job and maybe a fiancé/boyfriend. Have a few rescue dogs and a kickass kitchen in my house!

Your humor manages to shine through in anything you write, is it something you consciously think about or does it come naturally?

I’ve been told I’m snarky and that my humour is really weird sometimes LOL Some of my lines comes naturally, but I have to be careful with it or else all my characters will sound the same and that is what takes a long time.

How do you keep the voices of your characters distinct?

I sort of make them into like sitcom/movie characters in my head and definitely I write them down on paper or else I would go mad! I usually chart the characters to make sure I’m not making them all the same and that they can have their unique quirks :) Can’t keep it only in my head or else I’ll be thrown into a hospital!

What is your job/major? Why did you choose it?

I’m a political science major and I chose it because that’s why my pencil pointed to. No lie LOL! I wanted to go to uni, that was for sure, and I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do! Then I found out that you know, there’s law school when I was in my first year so I thought, okay, I’ll strive for that. I seriously don’t’ have the drive to do that at all! I would love to go back and change my major to English though, because seriously, the classes I’ve taken in that department, it’s just awesome and definitely some of my favorites.

Big city or small town?

I live in city, but it’s not big like say, New York! It’s like a city with sort of a small town feel to it.

Which would you choose, Narnia or Idris?

Narnia! Oh my gosh, Aslan! I’ve always wanted to play with a lion!

In 'The Guardians of Mustikos,' you've created your own world, how did you go about this?

I have no idea how I did that! I just wanted to create a new magical place but I needed it to be different and not in the human world! It just came up and to be honest, not completely well developed in the first book (something I’m working on, I swear!)

Do you have a favorite book or character of yours?

Are you asking from my stories or from other authors? Ahah I loved Ren from Nightshade though, if you’re talking about actual characters. And Noelle from the Private series, she has sass and she’s just too fun to read! From my stories, TGOM is like my baby, so of course that’s my favourite book ahah I love writing Claudius and Verity scenes because you can see there’s such a maturity difference! He’s the character that drives me insane because I have to really almost “be” in character to write out what he says and it’s hard to get out of it afterwards! He’s like this mysterious vampire that really no one knows if they can trust but he’s valuable so you can’t afford not to trust him. He’s just so complex and he brings up questions that Verity wouldn’t think of really asking herself and it creates this character development thing that I can’t get any other character to do. And well, because I totally picture him as Benedict Cumberbatch :3

Do you have any hidden talents?

Don’t think it’s a secret I love cooking haha. Aside from that, I play piano relatively well and I can fix a toilet pretty darn quickly LOL

Does your childhood inspire your writing at all?

Not really! My childhood was pretty uneventful! At least nothing I can consciously think of, maybe it does on a subconscious level!

Who was the hottest Disney prince?

Prince Erik! Kind of cool how he sish-kabobed (sp?) Ursula LOL I think he was one of the few princes that did something? Oh wait, there was Prince Phillip too I suppose ahah.

Favorite TV show?

That’s hard! How about top 5 D:

Criminal Minds (I love Reid and how devious some of their cases are!), Sherlock (it’s brilliant. Just hands down, worship worthy brilliant!), Friends (it’s a classic!), Big Bang Theory (you just grow to love all the characters and the subtle naughty things they do!), White Collar (just started watching but Bomer and art, can’t go wrong!) and MasterChef Australia (shut up, I get cooking ideas from that show LOL)

Would you rather eternally do laundry or wash dishes?

Dishes! My sisters do my laundry and I do the dishes anyhow! I hate hang drying wet clothes :(

How do you make such appealing male characters?

Not necessarily totally appealing haha. I put in a bit of what I’d want in a person but then make sure I add flaws that make them human and not like a perfect robot. At least that’s what I’m wanting anyhow LOL

How do you manage to make your characters relatable?

Are they relatable!? I’d be so over the moon if you said yes ;D I try to draw character traits from people I know and from what seems natural. I mean, none of my characters are going to speak like so; Where has thoust gone whilst I was strolling? WHAT? Unless you’re in a play, that’s really off! Like I said, I like to picture my scenes like a movie, and I guess that’s how I keep away too much of the crazy!

Where did the ideas for each of your books come from?

TGOM – out of my butt actually. I just suddenly wanted to write a book one day and I decided to draft out a story! Almost Loved – from the Fine Frenzy song, Almost Lover along with all the sitcoms I watch ahah I wanted it to be a bit of a mashup with HIMYM with Friends along with my own twists.

Do you have any guilty pleasures?

LOL I don’t have the ability to control myself, so everything I eat is practically a guilty pleasure! And honestly, naughty stories are always nice ;D

Thoughts on global warming and the impending zombie/vampire apocalypse?

Hope I turn into a vampire because I’d have flawless skin and a boyfriend with rock hard abs :) Besides, aren’t zombies like moldy humans?

Are there any genres/topics that you wouldn't touch with your writing?

Sci-fi (I just suck at it!) and Incest. Call me old fashioned, but hell no, that’s sick!

Do you have a developed plan for what you write or does it just come to you as you write?

I develop a basic plan LOL I mean general plot and characters. I’ll have scenes I want to write, but everything in between will be something that I’ll be flowing with.

You have your own blog, what sorts of cool things do you post there?

Haven’t updated that for like three months LOL! I’m not a social media person! Twitter (made one, never use it), instagram (not even signed up with), facebook (only if the besties have messaged me there) and what else is there? Ahah I lose my phone on a regular basis as well, so texting is out of it as well! So yeah, that blog had no chance ahah

As a self-professed cover whore, what sorts of things do you look for in a cover? Did you make your own?

I can’t help it! I like covers that are simple and elegant. I hate covers with like everything from the toilet to finger clippings on the cover! Like what!? Or people that use every font on their computer for the title! I made the cover for TGU and AL. A friend of a friend actually made the cover for TGOM :)

Ninja vs Pirate?

Pirates. Hello, Naruto vs. Orlando Bloom. You tell me sister LOL

Are you getting frustrated by my troll questions?

Nope! Can’t get frustrated with someone like you ;D

Anything else to add (about anything at all be it writing or warthogs)?

This was a long ass interview :O! And thanks so much for doing it!