Today I'm featuring

Tell us something about yourself, who are you as a person and as an artist?

First off, thank you for featuring me!  

I'm someone that feels happiest when I get a chance to help others and cheer them up. Therein also lies my biggest downfall because I tend to sacrifice my own feelings for someone else's sake and I initially forgive easily (which is not always as nice as it sounds). I smile and joke around a lot, but if you get to know me better you'll find I'm really quite a shy and self-conscious girl. I've been told I'm an “everything goes” person in that I am accepting and don't run away from difficult topics if it concerns people I care about (they appreciated it, so I guess it's okay). 

As an artist I can simply be described as a fiction writer. My main strength is short stories, although I occasionally write something poetry related. I can enjoy reading non-fiction, but I like fiction better, especially the fantasy genre. For some reason people and things tend to die in about 95% of the stories I've uploaded. Lastly, English isn't my native language so I work hard to expand my vocabulary. I hope I'm succeeding so far!

Who or what brought you to dA?
~PandasPwnz did! She, along with another friend (who has sadly left dA) convinced me to join. One of the better decisions I've made in this life! I've met so many great people and got a chance to improve my skills more than I would have been able to do by myself. I'm truly grateful she dragged me out here. Shout-out to you, Lin! 

What are the things you’ll always remember since first joining?
It's been quite a few years ago, I'm not sure if there was anything that really struck me when I first joined. I do remember getting my first comment on a horrible poem I wrote, you know, one of those poems that make you cringe when you re-read them a few months later. The person actually liked it. That was a good day, because aside from my friends I'd never had an “outsider” give me a compliment.

Oh, and probably when I discovered *shilin also resides on dA. It was a magical day. 

When did you first decide you wanted to be a writer/poet?
As far as I know I didn't decide it. I became it without knowing, really. When I began writing stories, I was about 8 years old, give or take a few months. I've kept the stories, and while they're horrible in their execution there's actually a somewhat understandable storyline to them. Never worked hard on them, though. I tried to write a novel when I was 12 but failed miserably and pretty much took a long break from it. At the age of 17, after enduring a few years of rough patches, I finally turned to writing again to help me cope. Armed with a few more years' worth of knowledge, I restarted work on that novel and began to put serious effort into writing in hopes to improve my skills. So if we're going to be formal, when I was 17. 

What is your motivation, what keeps you going?
That it helps me cope with life, I think. As a HSP (highly sensitive person – Google it if you're interested) life overwhelms me most of the time. Writing allows me to sort out my thoughts. Knowing that I have something that I both love and think I'm good at helps me from getting knocked over. So: personal growth is my motivation. Also I just really, really want to finish something for once. 
 
Pick 3 of your own works and tell me why you’ve picked them.
Story of a lying girlThat morning, the sun rose for the fourth time. The vastness of the unfamiliar forest weighted down on her aching shoulders. An eerie silence enveloped the trees around her. There was not a single hint of any animal life; not even the hum of bugs. As far as she knew, she was the sole inhabitant. Other people might have been bothered by lack of human contact, yet for her, it was almost a breath of fresh air. At least that was what she told herself.

The girl noted that so far she had gotten neither hungry nor thirsty, and seemed to have no need to rest, even though she could still enter a dreamlike state at night. With nothing to do her only o
This piece... is a very personal one. Probably not most emotional one at first glance, but it's different from the other ones in that it's a lot more subtle, and requires a bit of metaphor-decoding. I've polished this until I felt like I'd done everything I could to make it better; I unleashed all my skills on it so to speak. I'm kind of proud of it.

Ace of heartsI stopped counting the days a long time ago. I had started with seconds, but that proved to be too fast for me to keep up with. Then minutes, and hours, and time moved along while I was stuck in the same place I'd always been. The day I quit keeping track was day 4022. The day I last saw them.

They call me Ace. At least she did. She told me I needed a name, and so she called me Ace. Her name was Naomi. Naomi and Dai. They were the only ones who called me that. When others call me, I'm not Ace anymore. I'm number four. But usually I am referred to as 'our biggest source of income,' followed by a laugh and a sneer. I don't understand. I do not
Oh, how I love to hate this piece. It's probably seen 3 major rewrites before I sort of felt okay with it, but I do think it's one of my more original works.
 
To fear the futureI knew a girl who wrote stories.

Every day she would sit at her desk, scribbling furiously. Her tattered notebook nearly fell apart, and was held together by tape alone.
It was a collection of everything she'd written for the past few months. Only when every corner of the paper was filled would the notebook be replaced. Drawers were filled with them, crammed to their limits. Drawers full of stories.
The cycle would repeat itself, until the girl grew up. Her education started consuming more and more time, yet she still wrote every day. Pages were filled with her fantasies and dreams. The real world might've rejected her, but her stories welc
Right now I think this is clunky and could be a lot better, but it captures feelings I still carry within my heart. Therefore it has that special bit extra that, to me, separates it from my more regular works.
 
Now do the same for 1 of your all-time favourite works here on dA.
Losing a HeroLosing a hero

It happened four years ago, but I still remember it as clearly as if it was merely last week. I'd spent countless hours when I was little, sitting in his old, fairly ugly, dusty green chair, watching old cartoons from the early 90's in his old living room that just smelled like love and acceptance. I remember so clearly when my grandfathers wife would sit with me and paint through coloring books, the pencil marks often falling over the edge of the markings. I remember eating their homemade jam, drinking their homemade lemonade and eating their cakes. I remember his warm, soft hugs and the way he'd smile. I remember how he'd chu
This work chokes me up every time I read it. She describes the loss of her grandpa and all that comes with it in a honest and raw matter. Even though I've been fortunate enough to never have lost a loved person, when I read her story, I feel like I have, and I admire her for her way with words.
 
Is there anything else you’d like us to know? 
I have an unhealthy obsession with wings, so if you ever need something from me... you now know my weakness. When I write, I tend to unconsciously mimic my character's facial expressions. I try not to write in public anymore.   Please let there be other people that do this...

That's all. Thank you for interviewing me!