15, 17, 24 I love hearing about people's 24 ;-)
15) why did you start writing?
I was always encouraged in creative writing in school. My interest and commitment to it have always waxed and waned. Why did I start writing this time around? Having a newborn meant being stuck awake and quiet for long stretches of time, trying not to think about how painful nursing was for me. So I revived my childhood coping skill of thinking up detailed stories. Posting said fanfictions became this amazing outlet for my new stuck-at-home lifestyle, I met all of you wonderful supportive people and I’ve never looked back!
17) if you could give your fledgling author self any advice, what would it be?
Don’t get addicted to the notes. Views, kudos, likes, comments, reblogs... they feel great but if you focus too much on that reward system it just ruins everything. Keep writing for you, and for your friends and the dedicated fans.
24) have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story?
I don’t think I would say “expert,” because prior to fanfiction I set the bar so high on research that i never wrote anything (Inuit culture and every detail of every version of Ancient Egyptian afterlives comes to mind). So these days I google search for a maximum of a half hour, until I get a “that’s plausible” level of answer to my query.
I was about to become an expert on antisocial personality disorder and emotionally abusive relationship tactics to write the Ivar I thought I wanted for my story but... it was too upsetting and I had to stop.