Writers as Readers

1. When I read, I always need a comfortable space. I am a fast reader, so any distraction and I can miss pages of plot by the end of the book. I always read in my bedroom with soft music. I love playing music that reminds me of the characters and their stories. I enjoy natural light, so I will also read outside in the hammock we have set up in our backyard. I will either fix myself a hot drink or I will snack on Cheese-Its or something of that nature.

4. One of my best memories connected to reading is being so immersed in the Maximum Ride series. I remember being at church during youth group on Wednesday nights, racing around with my friends and pretending we were characters in the book. We would imagine that we had wings and that we were part of an experiment to genetically mutate children. I always played my favorite character, Iggy. There was something about him that I fell in love with as a reader. I remember being so connected with those books. They were my entire childhood up until 8th grade.

11. I think the reader is the most important thing to consider when writing. You want to get your idea across, but you don't want it to be too personal or abstract to where your writing is not relate-able. Sometimes people will leave out key details about a story because they already know the situation or the people in it. I always try to ask myself about what someone would think or still want to know if they had never read the piece.

13. I think I might write a book one day. If the proper plot an inspiration comes to me, I think I could definitely succeed as a writer. At this point, I've started a lot of prompts for possible ideas, but I have a hard time organizing my thoughts so it is not easy for me to come up with a plot that people can follow. My "About the Author" would probably say "Laura Payne grew up in the town of Springfield, Missouri, where she developed her passion for literature. She graduated high school with over 6 English credits, and was active in Speech and Debate and theater. She currently lives in an apartment on the west coast, where she spends her days writing and playing with her fat cat."