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An Interview With Cynthia SiddleTell us a bit about yourself. What would you like us to know about you? I am Cynthia Yvonne Siddle. I am a 38 year old divorced mother of one daughter named Ashley. I have written to novels: Black Rose-The Beauty Within and I Am Charlotte. I am currently trying to get national exposure to focus on childhood abuse and the effects it carries on into adult life. What are you doing now? (Career? Married? Single? Children? Pets?) Right now I am in the process of working on my 3rd novel which is currently untitled. I am single but I have been dating the same man for the last 5 years. I have an 11 year old daughter and no pets. What is your favourite food? My favorite food would have to be Chinese. What is your favourite colour? My favorite color is Fushia. What is your favourite sound? I love all types of music. Growing up in a small town, I listened to everything because we only had 1 good radio station. So my favorite sound would have to be anything with a good soulful beat. In other words, anything that makes me dance or just sit and sway back and forth. Who is your favourite person? Right now I would have to say my favorite person is Barrack and Michelle Obama! They stand for every person no matter what the creed or sexual orgin. I think it is about time for some positive change on all levels in America. What is your favourite place? The beach is my favorite place in the world! I love to sit and watch the sun set and listen to the music that God has naturally given us. I love the way the waves move in and out like the water has a mind of it's own. I close my eyes and smell the air, and it makes me smile. What is your favourite memory? My favorite memory is my first concert! I went to see MC Hammer at the Greensboro coliseum. It was absolutely wonderful! I had never saw so many people in one place and so many lights. It was magical. What is your favourite article of clothing? Lounging clothes. Anything that I can put on to go to my daughter's school, the grocery store and to meeting if I have to. What is your favourite word? My favorite word Odyssey because I have been wandering and on a spirital quest all of my life. What is your favourite writers' quote and why? Oprah once said that 'We all have to take responsibility for our own life.' I love this because so many people go through life trying to blame everyone else for things that has went wrong with them. When all they have to do is accept the mistakes they have made, learn from them and move on. Never give up an never surrender. At the end of the day, we only have ourselves to blame for the way our day turned out. What is your most favourite quality about yourself? I love to listen to and help people in any way I can. Sometimes all it takes is a kind word from someone else to turn our lives around. What is the least favourite quality about yourself? Not to get so fustrated when things don't always turn out right. I need to understand that I can't save the world. If you could go anywhere in the world right now, where would it be and why? I would go to Spain so I could spend some time with my sister/cousin. She is very ill and I want to spend all of the time with her that I can. I want us to enjoy and love each other while we still can. What inspires you to write and why? My inspiration for my writing comes from my daughter. I always try to be a positive role model in her life and show her that she can do anything if she put her time and effort into it. I want her to understand that sometime things seem so far out of reach, but if you keep at you can achieve the unachievable. What is your favourite book and why? The Color Purple. I love the way Ceilie overcame so much adversity. She never gave up and eventually she achieved her goal. Sometime we all have to go through the bad to get to the good. What is your favourite genre and why? The 1970's portrayal of the coming together of all people. Showcasing what black people were exposed to through the expression captured on film. I.E.: Mrs. Martin Luther King and her daughter at his funeral. List your three favourite authors (any genre) and why? Steven King-I love the way his mind can go wherever he wants to. What do you think makes a writer successful? Being true to oneself and having as much exposure as possible. Showing everyone that sometimes bad things happen to good people. I feel like all writers should be able to identify with their readers on some type of level. Many time the writer is the person which they are writing about in one way or another. Whta is it that makes you successful as a writer? That no matter what happens, I will keep pressing onward. But I think that I have been through alot of things that some of my reads are going through. So therefore when they read my work, they can see themselves in a new light. Learn to accept things and make a change for the better. What are your goals as a writer? To eventually sell enough books to open up a few places call 'Cynthia's House.' This will be a place where young people can come and get out of an abusive family situation. They will be able to feel love and get the help they need. They will be able to prepare for college or the armed services. The goal is to show them that success is possible no matter what happens in your life. What is the best tip you can give to fellow writers? To learn to accept things that people say. Everyone is not always going to like or understand what you are doing. You have to take all types of criticism. The good and the bad. What do you hope to provide your readers with through your writing? Comfort and understanding. To let them know that they are not alone. To remind them that change can happen and cycles can be broken. It is up to them to decide which road they travel. List your three favourite online writer-resource sites and why (include URLS). Of course number one is Writers Manual. It is wonderful the way you are trying to help get new writers the recongination they deserve. Poetry.com because they give people with the desire to write short stories a chance to express them selves. Lastly would be KHA Books because this is a company who specializes in helping new black authors by pointing them in the right direction. If you have published a book, tell us about your publishing success (title, publishing date and company, where it is available to purcahse). Black Rose-The Beauty Within was published May 2007 with PublishAmerica. I Am Charlotte was published August 2008 with PublishAmerica. They are available through the following places: www.publishamerica.com, How long did it take you to write your book(s)? Black Rose-The Beauty Within took me 1 year and I Am Charlotte took me 9 months. What would you do differently if you could repeat the same publishing experience? If I could I would change my thinking that the Publishing company takes care of everything for you. Like book signing and promotion. It is up to you when you are an new unknown author to do everything like proof reading, editing, posters, signs, interviews, public appearances and news paper articles. What have you learned about the publishing world? That it is not as easy as I thought it would be. I don't think I have worked this hard for such little pay before in my life. This is your chance to 'Talk Back' to your readers. What would you like to say to them? I hope that each and everyone of you really try to get the message in each novel. Be kind to others and know that you are somebody who is worth more than you can ever imagine. Never give up and let someone else tell you what you can or can not be. What's the one thing that you want them to know about your writing? I want them to know that in order to tell a story, that sometimes the language is rough. But just remember that I don't talk that way. If any of you are offended by anything that I have said, I am truly sorry. Remember sometimes fiction is based on true facts! |
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