@SallySlater is the author of 'Paladin' *whispers* and a very patient person for taking the time out of her busy schedule to answer my questions ^-^ ! Thanks Sally!

*ahem* She has also posted a thread called 'How to get reads on Wattpad - Everything you need to know', which is really helpful for the new writers looking for ways to promote their stories. You can check out this thread by clicking on the external link!

Enjoy!

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1. What do they call you?

A. Most people call me Sally. A few close friends call me Sals. My parents have been known to call me Salamander, but don’t tell anyone I told you that.

2. For how long have you been writing?

A. I pretty much started writing fiction when I joined Wattpad – so for about 3 years now. I’m a fiction baby!

3. Which part of writing a story, do you enjoy the most? (Creating characters, the plot and the subplots, the beginning/ending or the middle)

A. Definitely creating characters. My characters are like my babies (now I’m assuming, as I have no children. I don’t even have a pet). In a sense, being an author and creating characters is like developing a relationship of sorts with them. Sometimes the characters control me, instead of the other way around.

4. Have you faced any embarrassing moments, in terms of writing?

A. Yes! I wrote one of my infamous smutty scenes – in fact, the smuttiest of all smutty scenes, in my Paladin spoof book The Untold Restricted Stories, and blasted out an email to my followers on Wattpad to tell them to read the new chapter. I conveniently forgot that my uncle was one of my followers. So he gets an email – from SallySlater on Wattpad – that says read this new chapter. Naturally, it’s from his niece, so he clicks on it and reads the whole thing.

He left me a comment on the chapter! I thought I’d die of mortification. I love when my relatives read my work, but not THAT kind of writing. Now, whenever I send out an email for a new smutty chapter, I send out an explicit warning to my relatives (and my boss, who is also a follower on Wattpad) instructing them NOT to read.

(lol!)

5. Which is your favorite color? Have you made any reference to it in your story/stories?

A. Blue is my favorite color, but I can’t say it’s had any impact on my stories. I do think my personal preferences when it comes to physical appearance have made a difference, however. I’ve always loved green eyes (tooting my own horn here, since I have ‘em) and you will note Sam also has green eyes. That’s probably the only similarity physically we share. Well, maybe that and our big noses!

6. Out of the stories you have written on Wattpad, which is the most memorable one?

A. Paladin is the story of my heart, as corny as that sounds.

7. Are you planning on publishing soon?

A. That’s definitely the goal! I’m working on a massive rewrite of Paladin at the moment, and the goal is to publish that once it’s complete. I’m hoping to go the traditional publishing route.

8. Which is your favorite book/series on Wattpad?

A. I’m really bad at picking favorites, so I’m going to break the rules and pick a few that I’ve enjoyed. I recently read Division of the Marked by @MarchMccCarron, which is a fabulous YA fantasy. @TamaraDW’s Skipping Time is also quite good for something a little heavier on the romance side, and @ironkite’s A Touch of Poison remains an all-time favorite.

9. What kind of help do you provide - critiques, free advice or editing?

A. I hang out around the Improve Your Writing club and will provide advice whenever a thread sparks my interest -- I love weighing in on summaries or editing queries in particular because I'm a total grammar nerd. I do also provide critiques and reviews on chapters, but I don't do it based on read requests. I like to be able to choose the stories I edit or critique based on those that really grab me -- either because I know the author personally and believe in their writing, or because I stumbled on the story and couldn't stop reading for whatever reason.

10. Which author do you idolize (off Wattpad)?

A. I have so many, it’s hard to pick just one! My childhood author idol is Tamora Pierce, and you can definitely see her influence in my work. More recently, I’ve come to idolize Ilona Andrews, who writes the Kate Daniels urban fantasy series. Ilona Andrews is actually a husband-wife writer team, and I can’t say enough good things about their work. I have a total girl crush on the main character of their series, Kate, who is funny and awesome and way stronger than I’ll ever be, and her romantic interest/bane of her existence Curran, who remains my #1 book boyfriend. Ilona Andrews knows how to build chemistry between characters.

11. If you were a newbie, which part of the story would you focus on most?

A. I'm not sure if this is just applicable for newbies, but I maintain that characters are the most important components of a story. Know your characters' personalities inside and out -- make them original, multifaceted, and most importantly, believable -- and you've got a solid start to your story right there.

12. Which is your favorite character (off Wattpad) ?

A. Right now, Daenerys Targaryen, Mother of Dragons (from the show not the books)! I want to be her soooo badly. Mark my words, that will be my 2014 Halloween costume.

13. If you were given a choice to become one character (of your story posted on Wattpad) which one would you be and why?

A. Well, to be honest, I have always liked being a woman, so as much as I love Braeden and Tristan, I am going to have to say Sam. I admire how strong and determined she is, and I think that, despite her flaws (she's stubborn and spoiled for sure), she's got a good heart.

14. Do you prefer dark romance or the usual?

A. The best romance has a little bit of darkness and lightness to it, in my opinion. I don't enjoy melodramatic romances that have no humor to them, but a little well-placed angst can go a long way. Braeden's got some darkness to him, after all.

15. Where do you look for your inspiration?

A. I get inspiration from everywhere! Certainly from books I read, TV shows and movies I watch, but I've also drawn from real-life experiences, people I've met and places I've been. Tamora Pierce is one of the heaviest influences on my work, and I would say anime is another pretty significant influence. I'm a sucker for a silver-haired bishounen.

16. What’s your favorite TV show?

A. Game of Thrones!

(*shakes head* everybody seems to be obssesed with that show lol!)

17. Do you prefer more reads, votes or comments?

A. I definitely prefer comments wayyyy more than reads or votes. I love interacting with my readers and knowing what they think about my writing. Votes and reads are good for my ego, I suppose, but they don't really tell me all that much about how a reader processed the story.

18. Imagine the world is collapsing around you, what would you choose to save – technology or books?

A. I love books but I'm practical - save technology! I can read my books on my Kindle.

19. What is the best advice you have given and received?

A. About writing or in general? Haha...I'll stick to writing. The best writing advice I've ever been given is to plan out your story. That can mean different things for different people - some people like to write out extremely detailed outlines; other people function better with just knowing general events. But having a pretty good sense of where your story is going is key to writing a story with direction and without plot holes. Also, having a plan is a good way to stave off writer's block.

20. Any extra tips for our young writers?

A. No matter how good or bad you think you are, post your stuff to Wattpad! Sharing your work with your peers and getting feedback is the best way to improve.

Also, don't Google Image gangrene for research, even if one of your characters develops gangrene for whatever reason. Trust me on this one.

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I hope you guys enjoyed this interview !