Have you ever blown off a social event with real people to stay home with ones you made up?
"I have, absolutely. My friends and family are understanding, but my past employers not so much." - Lauren Destefano, author of Wither.
"I'm not ashamed to say that I have. I love my characters. I spend so much time with them, conversing with them in my head, that they do become real to me. Writers often talk about that moment in a manuscript when the characters come alive and surprise them. And, you know, it does happen. If you've created well-rounded, complex characters, eventually they're going to act in a manner contrary to your wishes, and that's a GOOD thing." - Shaun David Hutchinson, author of The Deathday Letter. 
"Absolutely. Sometimes I prefer my made up characters to real people! I cancelled a Stars concert with a friend while I was working on my first book, Audrey, Wait! The characters were just talking so much and I couldn't stop writing them down. I've learned that when that happens, you need to ride the wave, so to speak, even if it means missing the Stars concert. (It also helps that I have lovely & understanding friends.)" - Robin Benway, author of The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, and June.
"Hah! No. I’ve forgotten about events because they weren’t in my planner, and I’ve wanted to blow off social events. But I’ve never purposely made excuses to avoid an event just so I could stay home to write or read. (That’s my story, and I’m sticking with it!)" - Jackie Kessler, author of Rage.
"No, I feel like I should feel guilty saying this, but no, I don't think I've ever done this. I don't really go to a lot of social events, period, so when I do it's generally a pretty big deal. I spend plenty of quality time with my characters." - Cynthia Hand, author of Unearthly.
"Yes, because of deadlines or I’m in the zone and don’t want to interrupt the flow I have going. I call this “going dark”. My friends and family are very supportive and know I’ll be back at some point." - Judith Graves, author of Under My Skin.
"Sure. In fact, it’s the perfect excuse to avoid that charming, family get-together you’ve been dreading. 'Sorry, mom, I’m on deadline…'" - Rae Carson, author of The Girl of Fire and Thorns.
"All the time. I used to do it more often than I do now. Now, I strive for balance. Real people are important, too." - Veronica Roth, author of Divergent.
"Ha! Only when I'm on deadline! Seriously though, can honestly say I haven't. The real people in my life are what fuel me to write about the ones I make up. All work and no play makes Rachel a dull writer, and an all-around nutcase." - Rachel Hawkins, author of Demonglass.
"Yes. And sometimes, to the annoyance of my kids and my boyfriend, I'm physical present, but my head is very much in the world of whatever book I'm working on." - Sarah Darer Littman, author of Life, After.
"No, but I've blown off a social event with real people to stay home with ones other people have made up (i.e., to read, not write)." - Mitali Perkins, author of Bamboo People.
"Well, I wouldn’t call it “blowing off” a social event—sometimes, I would just rather spend time with characters of my own creation than those I know in the real world, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Right? Seriously, though, I wasn’t loaded with friends as a kid, and I know there were a lot of sleepovers I missed and parties I wasn’t invited to. But one of the perks of being a writer is that you have your characters. You’re never lonely." - Emily Wing Smith, author of The Way He Lived.
"Great question, and yes, this has happened many times! I was actually on vacation in Hawaii in February and because of a Desires of the Dead deadline, I had to lock myself in our hotel room while my husband and our friends went on a zip-lining adventure. I really wanted to go, but instead spent the day ordering room service with my characters." - Kimberly Derting, author of Desires of the Dead.
"ALL the time! Sometimes by choice, sometimes by necessity. But you know, I really *like* the people I make up!" - Kristi Cook, author of Haven.
"Um, all the time. I am pretty antisocial. But I did NaNoWriMo for the first time this past November, and I attended write-ins twice a week where about a dozen of us met up at a café with our laptops. A smaller group decided to continue weekly write-ins. So now I get to spend time with real people AND my made-up people." - Holly Hoxter, author of The Snowball Effect.
Find out Tuesday if the authors have any writing or publishing superstitions!
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I love this feature. :)
ReplyDeleteGreat question to ask!
I had fun reading all the answers. Next time one of my friends bug me about doing this to them, I will just send this link their way and say "I'm not alone!"