You're a Chupycabra.

I heard about this last night on this internet radio station. They talked about crypto-zoology. It is worth checking out. Just click here.

An Interview with Quarguana/Gabrielle, she who has resumed blogging!

From Gabrielle, I have learnt and enjoyed the many weird and freaky things our world has. She stopped blogging (and I assume perhaps enjoyed her hiatus) but has now resumed (yay!) Quarguana, as I know her better as, enjoys writng (see the common link between my interviewees...*wiggles eyebrows*) and has kindly replied to my interview, especially when I asked her out of the blue.

Name: Gabrielle
Screen name: Heather
Blog Address: http://oddstuff-quarguana.blogspot.com


On Blogging

What does your screen name mean or stand for and why did you choose it?

I've a different screen name on my blog. Heather is my middle name, and it happens to be awesome. Quarguana is... Basically a word a made up when I was little.

Why did you start blogging?

Mostly because I was bored, and I wanted to see how long I could keep it up.

What do you aim to achieve through blogging?

Nothing much. Perhaps showing the rest of the universe a bit more weirdness.

Can you give a brief outline on what you blog about?

Anything awesome that I've discovered.

How do you think you would spend your time if you didn’t blog?

About the same way I spend time now.

Blogger/Blogspot or Live Journal?

Blogger.

Would you consider your blog similar to a personal diary? Why or why not?

No. I don't really record my day-to-day life.

If you were paid to blog, would you?

Yes.

Would you ever consider blogging professionally?

Not really.

On Writing

What genre do you usually write?

Fantasy.

Which do you prefer, long term or short term writing projects (i.e. a novel compared to a short
story)?

Short term, generally.

How and who do you base your characters on?

A good portion of my characters are simply ideas that grew personalities. The rest simply crystallized.

Can you give a brief synopsis on your current writing project?

I've currently got two. One is a short-short based on an old poem. I'm laying out culture, history, etc. for another, but I have very little idea where it might actually go, yet.

If you were asked to write using a pseudonym, would you?

Yes. My last name isn't the best. XD

If you were asked to write a certain number or so of books for a specific series, would you?

It would depend on the series.

Do you have any book recommendations?

The Imaginarium Geographica series, Skulduggery Pleasant, Trickster's Queen, the Discworld series, The Professor, and anything that Douglas Adams wrote.

How can those who are wanting to write but aren’t too great at English or don’t have ideas write? Can you share any tips?

Try writing outside your genre. Read some poetry. Read outside your genre. Sooner or later, some idea is going to come, hit you over the head, and demand for you to write it.


General Stuff(these are very random)

Are you reading any books lately?

Yes. I'm reading the Discworld series, by Terry Pratchett. All thirty or so books.

What is your favourite book/story/novel called?

Here, There Be Dragons

What is your all time favourite cartoon?

Unshelved

Do you like baked goods? If so, which ones?

Yes. Molasses cookies or ginger snaps.

Winter or Summer?

Whichever it currently isn't.

What piece of advice would you give on how to survive high school?

Ignore what other people think. Turn in your homework on time.

Glass half full or half empty?

To quote the master, "This is my glass? I don't think so. Mine was all the way full! And it was a bigger glass!"

If you went to a party, what would you do there, or if you stayed at home, what would you do instead?

At parties I tend to hang out with the guys, so I can avoid inevitable gossip fests. If I stayed home, I'd read.

Facebook, MySpace, Orkut, Blogger, Live Journal and the likes. What is your opinion on sharing your life online?

Well, I tend to forget to check most sites. It's not exactly top priority...


I love Mythbusters. Have you heard of them and do you watch/like it too?

Mythbusters is awesome beyond belief.

Chickens are extremely adorable creatures. What do you think about them(don’t mind offending me if you say they taste good, haha)?

They dislike me. I am possibly the only person in the universe who's been bitten by a chicken.

Kiki Strike kicks mega butt. Have you read the books?

Yes. They are beyond awesome.

Are my socks stripy enough?

Nowhere near.

Irregular Kiki: An Interview with a deadly Death-Starer

Irregular Kiki, or I.K is one of the coolest and most awesomest people I have ever known. She used to blog regularly before, but not, sadly, she has other commitments and a busy schedule. However, you can spot her commenting on Ananka's Diary. Thankfully, I.K did have time to complete my interview and successfully managed to choke me on toothpaste (I was brushing my teeth when I first read her replies).

Screen name: Irregular Kiki

Blog address: www.randomirregularkiki.blogspot.com

On Writing

What genre do you usually write?
I like imaginative writing, (is that a genre?). I like creative writing.

Which do you prefer, long term or short term writing projects (i.e. a novel compared to a short
story)?
I believe I enjoy short term writing projects. This may be because I have only recently picked up interest in writing, so maybe soon I'll be able to expand on storywriting to write novels.

How and who do you base your characters on?
Eeeerrrrrm.... Real people? Most of the one's I've written are written in first person and there has not been much description about these characters.

Can you give a brief synopsis on your current writing project?
What is a synopsis? I'll just guess.
My current writing project is to concentrate and force my brain to think of something to write about. It is most likely going to be a short, imaginative story. I want to write a story with unusual characters, like Harry Potter, but I'm not sure. And possibly, once I write this short story, I can expand on it and hopefully write an interesting novel.

If you were asked to write using a pseudonym, would you?
I have no idea what a pseudonym is. All I can say is, you have done a lot of reading and that is why you know so many hard words.

If you were asked to write a certain number or so of books for a specific series, would you?
Sure I would! I don't know how but I would!

Do you have any book recommendations?
darling t0tally r3ad d0lly magaz1ne, it c0mez with a free ha1r straighten3r with th1s m0nth'z issu3

How can those who are wanting to write but aren’t too great at English or don’t have ideas write? Can you share any tips?
Sit down and float your mind away into your favourite dream. If you are weird, crazy, and adventurous like me, you'll see a lot of things. Everybody sees different things. Some people see birds fluttering under the clouds. Some people see Formula 1 cars racing. Some people see fire breathing dragons flying down mountains, volcanoes erupting, trolls escaping, mountain creatures on the run.
It all depends on your personal experiences and what kind of person you are. My method is to just float your mind away and think about your adventure, and keep expanding on it, thinking about all the things you would like to happen, just like a movie. Then you can jot down your ideas, and every time you get the chance, just keep floating your mind away to expand your "movie". This makes it so easy to write down your story in detail.


General Stuff(these are very random)

Are you reading any books lately?
I am reading a book called 'Blue Bloods' recommended to me by a very dear friend.

What is your favourite book/story/novel called?
It is called...... hmm that's a tough question. I haven't even read that many books. N/A

What is your all time favourite cartoon?
My favourite cartoon would be The Simpsons and I like Family Guy too. Spongebob is also very good.

Do you like baked goods? If so, which ones?
I look at Masterchef and they make 5 desserts all at once, and I just want to eat every single one of them.
I always see delicious-looking desserts in recipe books, such as Chocolate Caramel Slice, and I just want to sink my teeth into the deliciousness, but sadly I am afraid that once I make it, nobody would enjoy it, and it would be a waste of ingredients.
I really love cake. I love cake so much, it is my favourite food. It is heavenly.

Winter or Summer?
Summer. I love outdoors because it's where I belong. :D

What piece of advice would you give on how to survive high school?
Ooooooooooh... this is a really hard one. It's so hard to survive high school, I think you should just forget about your studies, and just concentrate on being in the Co0l group. Being in the co0L group is really important and it is the key to surviving high school.
go0d luck w1th surv1v1ng h1gh sch0ol!

Glass half full or half empty?
I dont know what you mean by this but oh well. I prefer my mug full of coffee, with a bowl of icecream.

If you went to a party, what would you do there, or if you stayed at home, what would you do instead?
If I went to a party, it must be someone I know really well, so I'd hang out with my party pal! If I stayed at home, I'd chat on MSN and watch movies. And drink coffee and eat ice cream.

Facebook, MySpace, Orkut, Blogger, Live Journal and the likes. What is your opinion on sharing your life online?
Well, it is important not to go overboard with all this. Some people report their whole life on there thinking everyone cares - let me tell you, they don't really.

The Lovely Steph Bowe

I accidently stumbled upon her wonderful (and regularly posted on) blog a month or two ago. She writes YA fiction and spends her time with many othe creative outlets too, including photography. An Aussie teen scaling up Australia's top writer blogs, here I present to you Steph Bowe.

Name: Steph Bowe
Blog Address: http://heyteenager.blogspot.com/
Website: http://stephbowe.com/

On Blogging

What does your screen name mean or stand for and why did you choose it?
I don't have a screen name - I'm just Steph Bowe.

Why did you start blogging?
For fun, and to get to know people in the YA book industry.

What do you aim to achieve through blogging?
To get to know people in the YA book industry, and get my novel published.

Can you give a brief outline on what you blog about?
Reading and writing YA fiction. Zombies, vampires and [B.C: It seems to be cut off for some

reason...?]

How do you think you would spend your time if you didn’t blog?
I'd write a bit more. I might even have a social life.

Blogger/Blogspot or Live Journal?
Blogger. I once had an LJ.

Would you consider your blog similar to a personal diary? Why or why not?
My blog is not a personal diary - it's about reading and writing, and a little bit of my life is thrown in, but not much.

If you were paid to blog, would you?
Yes!

Would you ever consider blogging professionally?
Yes.

On Writing

What genre do you usually write?
Contemporary YA. That means present day, real stuff. Mostly character driven. I don't consider it romance, but a lot of people tell me it is.

Which do you prefer, long term or short term writing projects (i.e. a novel compared to a short story)?
Novels. I've written two, working on a third.

How and who do you base your characters on?
Every character has a little bit of me. But they know who they are, and they form fully in my mind all on their own.

Can you give a brief synopsis on your current writing project?
That's top secret! I can, though.

If you were asked to write using a pseudonym, would you?
Sure, why not?

If you were asked to write a certain number or so of books for a specific series, would you?
Yes.

Do you have any book recommendations?
Check out my blog for those :-)

How can those who are wanting to write but aren’t too great at English or don’t have ideas write?
Can you share any tips?
Okay, so in my mind if you don't have ideas and aren't good at English, you shouldn't write. But if you enjoy writing, just write all you can. You'll improve as you go.

General Stuff (these are very random)

Are you reading any books lately?

I am always reading.

What is your favourite book/story/novel called?
I have a list of favourites on my blog - I can't choose just one!

What is your all time favourite cartoon?
Hamtaro! Random, yes. I loved it when I was ten.

Do you like baked goods? If so, which ones?
What the hell are baked goods?? I like muffins.

Winter or Summer?
Autumn and Spring.

What piece of advice would you give on how to survive high school?
Haha! I don't go.

Glass half full or half empty?
The glass is half too big.

If you went to a party, what would you do there, or if you stayed at home, what would you do instead?
At a party: I talk to everyone. If there's alcohol, I find a soft drink instead. I dance and shout and hug most people. I throw things at people who hook up at parties (usually, I throw my shoes.) I don't tend to get invited to many parties after people see what I do.
At home: Write. Read. Check and recheck email.

Facebook, MySpace, Orkut, Blogger, Live Journal and the likes. What is your opinion on sharing your life online?
I am on MySpace and Twitter, I have my blog and I have my StephBowe.com site. I share information online to publicise myself and my writing. I'm also on Flickr, so you can see photos of me, and I have a couple of video reviews on YouTube. My parents read and watch everything I put online, and as long as they're comfortable with it, I'm comfortable with it.

I love Mythbusters. Have you heard of them and do you watch/like it too?
LOVE Mythusters.

Chickens are extremely adorable creatures. What do you think about them (don’t mind offending me if you say they taste good, haha)?
LOVE chickens.

Kiki Strike kicks mega butt. Have you read the books?
I've read the first one.

Are my socks stripy enough?
Heck no.

Interviews!

Welll, a few weeks ago I interviewed a few bloggers who I find quite interesting (their blog, writing style, personality, everything in general =D ). I'll begin posting them up soon. I had A LOT of fun reading them, and thank you to those who replied :)

Busy

I've been pretty busy lately and now I've kinda fallen sick, so I haven't been blogging recently. Meanwhile, enjoy this freakishly lovely commercial by Cadbury, which has been airing Australian airwaves for a few weeks now.