I have shared many Author Q&A’s on Writer Wednesdays, so I thought I’d share a little with you now about me.

Which book made you fall in love with reading?

I have loved reading for as long as I can remember and there have been so many books that I enjoyed growing up. The Sweet Valley Twins are one example. There are over 150 books in that series, counting spin-off series as well. I’m sure I’ve read them all. I loved the “Super Chiller” creepy spin offs  as well. They hooked me with their intrigue and mystery – I felt like I was living dangerously by reading those back in my pre-teen years. Following the adventures of Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield are some of my favorite childhood memories.

A book that truly blew me away and was a delight to read was Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. It is a military-focused science fiction story published in 1985. The ending of the book blew my mind and taught me much about powerful storytelling. I will never forget that moment of epiphany. Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger was a book I read in high school and it is another that has stuck with me for decades. It’s character development and setting still lingers in my mind.

Which talent do you wish you had?

I wish I had a brain for the sciences… and a stomach that could cope with blood, guts, and other bodily fluids. Then I would be a nurse or doctor. The ability to help people in those capacities would be wonderful.

What time of day do you love best?

I am a morning person for getting work done. I love first thing in the morning, and I literally mean the crack of dawn. It is my absolute best time to do anything. Before I was married and pre-kids, I would work late into the night, following my creative instincts, and then rise early and start working immediately. I thrive when I can get in a head space and stay there for many consecutive hours.

I can’t do that anymore because of my mini mes who I need to feed and help get going with their own days. Plus, being home with the social distancing and school closures because of COVID-19, I really have to work hard to guard my precious morning hours.

Evenings are awesome too. They are bath and book time, Netflix binge time, connecting (now virtually) with friends and family time.

Share one quirk you have that most people don’t know about.

Perhaps I vaguely alluded to this earlier, but I have a very hard time with bodily fluids. I literally feel sick to my stomach and get strange anxiety reactions when I even hear people talking about blood or other medical things. Maybe it is my visual and visceral imagination where I vividly imagine people’s stories as they tell them to me. These things get me extremely squirmy and nauseous. A secret only a few people know about me: I like to think of the human body as solid… like a bar of pure milk chocolate, for example. I get really grossed out imagining that we are made up of organs and blood…

Tell us about your next big project.

My next big project… I have been working on a duology of non-fiction books called Creative Writing for Teens. One book is for teenagers themselves, the other for parents and teachers. This project has been slowed by all the life changes with the COVID-19 crisis, aka home schooling my kids and such. To be honest, I am craving some visual art and fiction. I am seriously leaning toward writing and illustrating a prequel to The 8th Island Trilogy, a graphic novel where Arden (Ella’s dad, Archie’s son, Tessa’s husband) is in search of a cure for Ella’s cancer in the real world.

What’s the strangest job you’ve ever had?

I worked at Laura Secord Hallmark. It was a fusion of a chocolate shop and greeting card store. I also worked as the receptionist in a real estate office. Are those strange?

Do you have a regular first reader?

I do! My mom! She’s my Rock-star first reader who I always give an early draft of every one of my books to. She’s great at picking up things I miss and she’s vocal; she always tells me what she really thinks.

In what fictional place would you most like to spend a day? What would you do?

This may sound funny, but I think I’d like to visit the trolls in the new troll movies.

Have you ever traveled to do research for your writing? Where did you go?

I wanted to travel to the Canary Islands to do research for The 8^th Island Trilogy, but it’s a pricey place to get to from Canada where I live. I reached out to their tourism department but there was a bit of a language barrier. I think they didn’t totally understand what I wanted to do. One day. I’ll get there one day. I did, however, discover the power of the internet. I “walked” up and down the streets where my story takes place… but virtually. It was really helpful.

If you could tell your younger writer self anything, what would it be?

I would tell my younger writer self to ignore the naysayers and be unyielding in my dedication to the story I felt compelled to write.

I vividly remember one such naysayer criticizing the book I was writing when I was in high school, grade 11 maybe. This was back when I was unknowingly having a religious cult experience, and a young man shamed me for having a rape scene in my book. He said something along the lines of, “Does writing about that bring glory to God?” I was not writing erotica or glorifying rape. It was a part of my main character’s experience in an abusive relationship—I clearly see now that what I was writing was fine, but at the time I felt the shame hang over me and I abandoned that story. Still to this day, I wish I had kept writing. I loved that story.

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?

This is not for everyone, but the best money I spent was going to school to get my Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. I learned so much, more than I could have on my own, edited my book Expecting Sunshine cover to cover four times, and made invaluable relationships with people I still keep in touch with today. It was one of the best experiences of my life.

Publishing a book is a bucket list dream for many people—are there any other accomplishments on your bucket list right now?

This is hard to answer because of COVID-19. I want to travel, but that is out of the question. It is a time of uncertainty. My headspace is very much present, in the here and now. Some of my current ambitions: get the laundry done, exercise regularly, spend quality time with my family. It is funny how seasons of life like this—during this pandemic—our priorities can change. My world feels smaller in many ways, and yet larger in others. I am slowing down to see and appreciate the beauty in small things, like growing my indoor garden, sitting in the sunshine, writing poetry. These are the things that bring me joy. These are the things I want to rest my attention on right now—and perhaps for all my days.

How does it feel to release the final book in the trilogy?

The 8^th Island Trilogy has been a big part of my life for almost a decade now. I wrote the first draft of book one, Above the Star, during NaNoWriMo 2012. That feels eons ago now. I wrote book two, Below the Moon, during a YouTube video series called “80 Days of Writing” on my youtube channel, and penned book three, Inside the Sun, in time lapse videos I also posted online. Between the writing, I was editing. Between the editing and writing, I was marketing, promoting, and publicizing. It has been a revolving cycle on repeat—but one I have loved and will cherish forever.

Releasing the trilogy feels surreal. It feels abstract. Hard to grasp and slightly unreal… Perhaps it will sink in during the days to come. I want to re-read the whole series myself, Above the Star through to Inside the Sun just for myself, for pleasure.

Thank you for joining me for this special countdown!!

If you want to reach out about The 8th Island Trilogy, please contact me at info@alexismariechute.com

With gratitude,

   –   Alexis Marie Chute