Megan Eccles is here today talking about her JuNoWriMo experience! Since I conducted these interviews just before JuNoWriMo began, you’ll just have to ask her if she settled on a story.

Megan Eccles

JuNoWriMo Profile: megseccles
Blog: www.loveletters710.com

Is this your first time doing JuNoWriMo?

It is! I’m really excited to be part of it this year. I discovered JuNoWriMo through a button of a blogger, and have anticipated it since. I’m glad it’s finally here!

What is your JuNoWriMo novel about?

I haven’t quite decided. The one I’m leaning towards is a dystopian science fiction novel, because I love my protagonist and her voice. But, I’ve had a thriller burning in my brain since I was in college.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I’m a pantser. Clearly, since I haven’t even chosen a novel yet. I wish I wasn’t. I have tried plotting, but I like to let my characters have control and decide what they want to do. I have fixed points in a story and try to get to them, usually. With my short fiction I just throw things to the wall and see if they stick and most of the time they do. The thriller I’m considering writing about it completely plotted though, which terrifies me. I feel like I have to get it right.

Favorite methods for collecting ideas & inspiration for your novel—mind mapping, Pinterest, creating soundtracks, etc.?

Reading. Good fiction makes me want to write good fiction. I get lost on Pinterest and Twitter and music makes me want to write music. I’m also a lover of prompts. I find they allow me to branch out and write about characters that I wouldn’t otherwise experience. I write a lot of flash fiction that way.

Favorite time of day to write?

I’m an early morning and late night writer. When I wake up my head is full of beautiful words that I just need to get down. Similarly, I plot when I should be sleeping. If it wasn’t for the “notes” app on the iPhone I would lose a lot of good words.

Word Processor or Pen and Paper?

I recently converted to Scrivener as a word processor and I’m hooked. When I was younger, I worked solely with pen and paper. But then my house burnt down and I had ashes instead of words. The moral of the story is to type it out and back it up, whatever you do.

Favorite way to beat writer’s block?

Prompts. Prompts. Prompts. For some reason being given a phrase and a photo to write about gets me going. When I’m stuck on a larger story, I hit up a prompt and writing makes me write more. Reading also helps. When I feel like I’ve forgotten how to write, I delve into a good bit of fiction. Holly Black and Brandon Sanderson and Stephen King always wake me up.

What book/author inspired you to start writing?

Lloyd Alexander and the cover of The Castle of Llyr. I’ve been meaning to write a blog post about this subject. I couldn’t have been older than seven and when I saw the cover of that book, the old one with the castle and the girl with the big, sad eyes, I was struck by it’s beauty. If words could inspire that, I wanted to be the one to write all the words.

Favorite drinks/snacks for writing time?

I’m a tea addict, so tea it always is. I drink hot black tea with goat’s milk and raw sugar. Perfection in a cup.

If you could visit any world from any book, where would you go and what would you do?

Narnia, without a doubt. Those were the first books my dad read to me, and the first books I read to myself. They helped me fall in love with words.

What’s your favorite book/writing related quote?

It’s a tie between “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” ― Ernest Hemingway and “Fiction is the truth inside the lie.” ― Stephen King. Both, I think, describe the glamorous uncertainty of writing. Sometime’s it’s shit and you question why you even bothered. Sometimes you write something so profound you wonder who was moving your hands as you wrote it. Writing is hard and wonderful and the best-worst job and passion to have.

Thanks for letting me take part!

JuNoWriMo Interview Schedule:

• 7 – Sarah Chafin
• 11 – Margaret McNellis
• 14 – Vicki Trask
• 17 – Amanda Fanger
• 19 – Sydney Aaliyah
• 21 – Camilla Kyndesen
• 24 – Megan Eccles
• 26 – Kate Sparkes
• 28 – Jeremy Aldana