Tina Serrano

Q: What were you like at school?

I was very shy. I listened to everything that was going on around me. I always wanted to write stories in school but never had the courage to read them in front of my classmates.

Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?

I wanted to be a mother, and a writer.

Q: Which three words describe you best?

Creative, Calm and Caring.

Q: What is your favourite word?

Read,read, read.....

Q: What makes you cringe?

Movies and music that use bad language.

Q: What are you afraid of?

I'm afraid that life will go by too quick and I won't be able to write all of the stories that I have in my head!

Q: When did you last have a really good laugh?

When I watched my 21 month old granddaughter Sophia dance....

Q: What is your most treasured possession?

My most treasured possession is a picture that is next to my computer of my parents when they got married. It is the only picture I have of them together.

Q: What do you do as a hobby?

Read, write, fish, and yard sales!

Q: What strange habits do you have?

When I read magazines, I start from the back. Someone told me it is because I have English in me. I wonder if that's true!

Q: What’s your favourite food?

I enjoy all food, but my favorite is seafood.

Q: What do you day dream about?

About living on a christmas tree farm and having christmas all year long.

Q: What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done?

I went sledding down the hills with my granddaughters and I never had so much fun!

Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

I teach preschool, but would like to teach creative writing to older children.

Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?

It depends on where I am and what I'm doing. If I'm with my kids then I feel younger. If I'm with grownups that are serious, then I feel old!

Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?

Oprah

Q: What quality do you most admire in a person?

The ability to listen to others.

Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?

Disney World in Orlando florida!

Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?

To realize that everything is not as it appears.

Q: What would you most like to change about yourself?

I don't think there is anything that I would change right now at this point of my life. I am determined to live my dreams.

Q: What has life taught you?

To laugh often and listen to others.

Q: How long have you been a writer?

I have written poems and stories for my preschool classes over the past twenty years, but did not get any of my books published until 2009.Now I have 3 published.

Q: Was there a specific moment in your life when you decide to become a writer?

Yes, my father wrote a poem for me that made me cry. I knew that I wanted to affect people that way with words.

Q: Where do you do your writing?

I do most of my writing in my bedroom on my computer, but I also do a great deal of writing when I'm outdoors. I love the woods and the lessons that nature gives us.

Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?

The best thing is the feeling you get when someone loves your stories. The worst thing is having to stop writing to go to sleep!

Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?

Nature and my teenage son and his friends have been a big part of my writing. The memories that I have of my four brothers growing up also inspire me.

Q: Which of your own characters do you most identify with?

I am witing about a little girl's effort to save her grandparent's tree farm. Her name is Lizzy and she is living the life I dream of living!

Q: What do you do to combat “writers’ block”?

I have three stories in process at the same time.I also write many ideas down as I think of them. My mind is constantly wondering into a new world! I get writers block and I have to do some research or reading in order to continue my writing.

Q: What was your favourite book as a child?

I remember reading Charles Dicken's books and wishing I could write like him.

Q: What book do you wish you had written?

One of the greatest stories ever, "A Christmas Carol"

Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

I would say - read,read,and then read some more.Then you can be the creative writer that you want to be.