Q&A by Matthew Carpenter with Ashley Earley

   I did an interview with an acquaintance that I met in a class I took in high school and he sent me an email earlier this year asking me a bunch of writing and personal questions. The questions he asks are in bold. Sorry it took me so long to post this Matthew! :)

Questions about Writing:

-Have you ever done, or even considered, devoting a whole day to writing? As in, something along the lines of waking up to see just how much quantity you can get on the page. Not leaving your room, only stopping to eat, refraining from calling or texting friends, and really just carrying on with it all until you're sleepy and ready for bed.

I've done that many times during the weekends! That's when I get most of my writing done. I genuinely enjoy days when I can devote my entire day to nothing but writing!

-Do you prefer more of a slow and steady pace, or are you often into writing bombs, where you try to produce a lot of pages in a short period of time? Does the former become monotonous and disheartening, or does the latter only  mean low quality and, in the aftermath, exhaustion that hinders further work?

I like writing bombs the most. Slow-paced writing can be disheartening for me because I find it harder to focus on the task at hand. I don't find writing bombs low quality. At times it can be, but I believe that it depends on my mood and the scene that's playing out. I do get tired after but it's because I devote an entire day to bomb writing! After going on a writing craze, I can't imagine anyone not being exhausted haha.

-Does your writing always pertain to one location, or do you sometimes switch up the setting and write by a busy street corner, a rushing waterfall, or whatever might be radically different?

I switch the setting quite often in my books but it mostly depends on the type of book. As in, if I feel that I'm visiting the same places much too often, I will take my characters to another location. Or, if the plot demands it, I will. Like, for example, my character is a time traveler or something or other, I will move my characters around a lot.

-What do you think of the quote that writers must stay immersed in what they do so that they don't let reality destroy them? Is writing a form of drunkedness, just without alcohol? That is, do fictional writers write because they hate reality and need something else to connect with, delude them, whatever?

I feel like being out in reality can mess with the part of you that needs to stay in the story. You get distracted with the things going on in your life, other people's lives, work or school, and the things around you. If you're consumed by reality, then it can be harder to visit the world you've created on your pages. I do, to an extent. I feel like I belong in the worlds I've created more than in reality most of the time. Writing also helps me escape my problems. Writing is my way of taking a step back from everything for a while.

-Do you prefer getting up early to write, or rather staying up writing long into the night?

I'm a night owl so I absolutely love staying up till 2am to write. My house is quiet and there's never anyone awake to bother me haha.

Personal Questions:

-How does it feel to have actually completed and published your own novel? What an accomplishment! Has the glory faded much?

It has a bit and I think it's because I've written 2 books since then. I'll get that feeling back when I publish another!

-Do you keep a journal? If so, for how long? Is it as enjoyable as writing stories?

I do have a journal but I don't use it often. Like I said before, I write to escape my problems - it calms me. Writing in my journal helps me access and make sense of my problems, and allows me to blow off some steam. It's not as enjoyable as writing fiction because I would rather pretend to be someone else.

-Is there a particularly favorable music genre of yours? To write to or just listen to. Artist? Band? Song?

I listen to all kinds of music so there is no way I can give you a list haha. I have a "writing album" of the songs I listen to the most but it's rather long. I don't really have a favorite song, it switches almost every week. My favorite artist would have to be Ed Sheeran. And I don't really have a favorite band.

-And finally, do you have a most influential life event of your own, something you did, from which you seek and pull inspiration during hard times?

Not particularly. I think about my friends and family and how it was difficult to self-publish my own book but I managed to get it done, and that I will get it done again.

www.ashleyearley.com
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