Friday Feature: @AmandaCary
The first Friday of the New Year. Epic. HAPPY NEW YEAR PROSERS!!!!
So, this is a big ol’ doozy of a Friday Feature. You probably know this crazy lady (crazy as in good, not surrounded by 47 cats and shaking a bejewelled stick at passers-by kinda crazy) already, but if you don’t; you’re about to. People, meet the wonderful person that is AmandaHugNKiss – ha! Only joking, it’s the inimitable @AmandaCary
P: What is your given name and your Proser username?
A: Before I answer, I just want to say thank you so very much! This is by far the coolest thing that’s ever happened to me. I also need to take a moment to thank my mother because it’s standard practice.
Thank you, Mom.
My name is not Amanda Cary, it is actually Ashley Cavanagh. User name, @AmandaCary. I know it seems pretty ridiculous to use a real name as a screen name that isn’t my real name at all, but it’s a pen name my daughter gave me whilst attempting to write an erotic romance novel, so I kept it and love it dearly.
P: Where do you live?
A: I live in Texas, close to Dallas, on three acres of beautiful semi-wooded land with @MilesNowhere, four kiddos, a tiny pond full of tiny fish, a blue heeler, a devastatingly challenged King Charles Cavalier, lots of bunny rabbits, and Miles' two goldfish named Satan and Bernard.
P: What is your occupation?
A: Well, currently I am mom/wife/chauffer, but next month I am going back to work! @MilesNowhere and I own/operate a small property maintenance business, so I like to call myself a carpenter’s apprentice. To be honest, I just paint things and go to the hardware store and talk a lot while he works.
P: What is your relationship with writing and how has it evolved?
A: I’ve written since I was very young; poetry, stories, started a few books that I never finished, music, etc. Generally, the only thing I ever used it for was a cathartic outlet and a way to BS through essays in school, but I decided in the last year or so to just throw myself out there. I’ve sent multiple pieces to large contests, won a few small ones, been messed over by a couple of small “publishing companies” (I can give you guys a few tips on how to avoid these guys), and I found Prose along the way. It still serves as a way to purge myself of inner demons, but my goal now is to eventually find the resources and skill to make a living…one day…far, far away in Fairytale Writer’s Land, where I shall mount my golden unicorn and ride into the sunset with a leprechaun named Hal.
P: What value does reading add to both your personal and professional life?
A: Oh my, what value doesn’t reading add to life? The obvious, of course, entertainment, information, education.
Aside from the meat and potatoes, there is the delving into another person’s mind and picking them apart. Whether you prefer fiction, nonfiction, classic, fantasy, etc., you will pull something from the writer into yourself.
On a personal level, this creates a growth and open mind, connectivity to the people around you. You understand that the workings of the human mind are in no way, when speaking in terms greater than the cut and dry, standard or unequivocal. At the same time, we can all relate to the very primal core of what drives us a species and use this as a way to feel kinship towards one another - if that makes any sense.
On a professional level, making sure to keep up to date with what is going on in the literary world (i.e., styles, trends, language) should in essence help you break out and fit in just enough to raise a few eyebrows. One thing I’ve learned whilst trying to pave some kind of minuscule walking trail to a decent income is that while people are looking for unique, they are also looking for trendy. So, you have to be able to produce what people want and are reading in such a way they haven’t seen it yet. I guess.
The best example I can think of is prompt I was given for little supernatural romance novellas to be sold as e-books: “strong female lead; supernatural male lead; erotic but not too adult; can be about vampires, shapeshifters, ghosts; make it unique.”
It really helps to read in these cases to see that you are hitting the mark whilst simultaneously not hitting the mark that has been hit 342 times before.
P: Can you describe your current literary ventures and what can we look forward to in future posts?
A: As of now, the only thing I’m actively trying to achieve is to finish my first novel. On the side, I’ve been attempting to blog and ghostwrite academic articles, but I’m just not finding it fulfilling, to be honest.
I suppose you can one day expect a few more chapters to be added to “Of Those Born in Dyad” and lots of other “for the sake of writing” writing to be posted.
I am also thinking about taking the premise of my story “None” and turning it into some kind of short story series. It may not be worth much, but it holds a special place in my heart, so that will be enough to get it going for my own sake.
P: What do you love about Prose?
A: Oh, I love so many things about Prose! I love, love, love the bookstore! It’s a wonderful opportunity for the authors here to put their blood and tears out for others to enjoy! I can’t think of anything more important for a person who has spent so many long hours, so much hard work and dedication on their masterpiece, than to have it read and appreciated by an audience. It really is a great feature for Prose and its users.
I also love the challenges! Such a great way to stay on top of your game and continue to broaden your skills, reach outside of your comfort zone, and just have some fun with writing.
Of course, I also love the community here. I love the “pretty much anything goes” policy that seems to remain unwritten and respected. I can honestly say I’m pretty bad about responding to comments and reposts, so I’m not the best example for a person who takes advantage of it because I have an army of children to attend to, but it’s wonderful when I can!
P: Is there one book that you would recommend everybody should read before they die?
A: Am I allowed to feel embarrassed that I don’t have an absolute answer? I have a few that pop into my mind, but the first was “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy. It’s post-apocalyptic (who doesn’t like a good end-of-the-world read), it’s heartwarming, it’s devastating, it’s profound, it’s genius, and it’s going to make you cry.
I have also always loved the novel “The Mists of Avalon” by Marion Zimmer Bradley. I can’t even say exactly why, but if you haven’t read it, read it!
P:Do you have an unsung hero who got you into reading and/or writing?
A: Ha! Okay, so also a bit embarrassing. When I was a child, we were very poor. I mean, like food pantry, Ramen Noodle, Hamburger Helper, racing cockroaches for entertainment poor, so one thing we didn’t have many of were books.
One summer when I was around 11, my aunt Mary came to stay with us and left a huge box full of Harlequin romance novels for my mother. I snuck them out and stayed up night after night reading them and probably learned way too much about adult relations, but she is who I can attribute (blame for) my love of books!
P: Describe yourself in three words!
A: I don’t know.
P: Is there one quote, from a writer or otherwise, that sums you up?
A: @MilesNowhere nicknamed me Fruitcake. That’s the best I can come up with.
P: Favourite music to write and/or read to?
A: I will always love grunge and nineties college rock. I do not like metal. I love to write to classical, preferably strings with no percussion. Sometimes I turn on Florence Foster Jenkins because she makes me feel a bit whacky and wonderful!
I’m a lyrics girl, and I also love folk music, some alternative country, old-school soul (that sounds really corny). Anything beautiful and melodic, and I love edgy. Some of my favorite artists are The Counting Crows, Jason Isbell, Gillian Welch, The Shins, Father John Misty, Sean Hayes, Hilary Hahn, and so many more. If I name them, it’ll take up the entire page.
P: You climb out of a time machine into a dystopian future with no books. What do you tell them?
A: I would tell them to write. No need for explaining the past. Just write their hearts out and it will reform itself, and a whole new era of literature will be born.
P: Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you/your work/social media at accounts?
A: I am not a very exciting person, actually quite introverted. I used to run a small cottage bakery with Miles called Fruitcake’s Mad Yummies. Hmmm…I play guitar and sing, actually spent a lot of time doing that before I settled down. I once worked for an Elvis impersonator who ran a small diner that served a 14-course meal to 60 people every Saturday. I have sung the song “Black Velvet” so many times that I now automatically vomit if I hear it.
I’m also a transcriptionist, but it’s miserable work, so it’s not something I do on a regular basis anymore unless I find the subject interesting.
Feel free to find me on Facebook, although I can’t promise I’ll ever be around, and when I am, I usually just post kid pictures and Donald Trump memes, so pretty boring.
Again, thank you so much! I love and enjoy Prose and all you Prosers to the point of forcing myself to limit my time here for fear of becoming molded into the desk chair. It is a beautiful piece of the creative interwebs.
Thank you for all you do!
Round of applause for @AmandaCary – and you know what happens next. Follow, like, love and interact if you don’t already do so on here. You also know what to do if you want to be featured or know someone that does: or that you’d like to know more about.
Do it! Do it here: info@theprose.com