Paging Dr. Liebster... Dr. Liebster, Line One

A few days ago, I was given the Liebster Award by Katherine Hajer, a gracious writer and crafty artist.

Those who are Liebstered thank their nominator (thanks, Katherine!), answer the questions posed to them, nominate more people, and pose their own questions.
My nominees are:

1. Michael Robinson, he of the Digital Scofflaw blog. Michael has a sense of humor similar to mine, which, although it must be a burden in daily life, it at least got him a Liebster Award.
2. Sabrina Zbasnik, she of the Introverted Wife blog. Sabrina writes about dwarves in space (among other things), which is a pretty cool mashup.

My questions for them:

1. When did you start writing?
2. Has anyone ever actually told you not to quit your day job?
3. Is there a favorite food you eat that gives you inspiration to write?
4. Microsoft Word: love it, hate it, or something else?
5. Do you own an e.book reader, or use e.book software? If so, what kind? If not, do you see one in your future?
6. You're given a book promotion opportunity to sit in a bookstore window and write. People passing by will be able to read your work as you produce it. Do you agree?
7.  Is there a crowd/gang/posse/support group of writers you belong to, either in person or online?
8. What's your minimum length for a novel?
9. "Write drunk, edit sober." Is this good advice?
10. Can you have a strong opinion about an author's personality, political views, social positions, etc., without having that color your opinion about the author's work?

My answers to Katherine's questions:

1. Do you have one place you write in, several regular places, or are you a "writing nomad" (write where you can)? I write at different networked computers in various locations. However, I map out ideas with pen and paper all over the place, usually when I'm supposed to be paying attention to something else.
2. What are your favourite writing tools (either physical or software)? Favorite software tools are yWriter5 and Dropbox. Favorite physical writing tool is my Parker 51 fountain pen.
3. What is your biggest writing "win" from the last twelve months? That would have to be publishing my superhero novel, "Verbosity's Vengeance", which came out last September. It's a clear milestone in my writing career.
4. Author and genre comparisons can be tricky, but what are some signs that a reader will like your books (ie: if they liked X book or like work by Y author, they should check out your books)? If you liked The Phantom Tollbooth, Tuesday Next or the Avengers, you'll like my book.
5. The universe grants you power over all of writer-dom for one day. What's the one thing you make all writers stop (or start) doing? Stop being dismissive of people who have different tastes in literature. That, and stop picking on semicolons.
6. Recognising that everyone on my nomination list writes in the science fiction/fantasy/horror end of the spectrum — how much time to you spend on planning and envisioning your setting relative to character development? Setting and plot are probably weighted 5X as much as character.
7. Does your setting come first, your characters, or a combination of both? I'm much more likely to say, "Here's an interesting thing that can happen, let's put someone in there" than I am to say, "Here's an interesting person, what can I do with her?"
8. How much research do you do when working on a story? I try not to get too bogged down in research during first drafts. You can spend hours nailing down details that you might need to change later.
   
9. What are your favourite sources for setting inspiration? Probably movies, followed by real life. I've been fortunate enough to have done a fair bit of travel around the world, but that's nothing compared to the places the movies can take you.
10. If you could spend time in one of your settings, which one would you pick and how long would you stay there? Setting: I'd love to go out on patrol with the Grammarian. Zooming down rain-slick streets on a meme-enhanced motorcycle, chasing the bad guys to a deserted warehouse and jumping straight into a life-and-death firefight with high-tech weaponry - how cool would THAT be? How long I'd stay: right up to the point of getting my ass kicked. Then I'd drop out and leave the superhero derring-do to the professionals.

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