Mommy Adventures With Ravina Kurian: Author Interview

Friday, 16 August 2013

Author Interview - Cheryl Kaye Tardif

Tell us a bit about your family. I am married to Marc, “the Cable Guy,” and have one daughter, Jessica, who will be getting married in November. We also have a Pomeranian named Chai. She’s named for my favorite Starbucks drink – a “venti chai tea latte with 2 shots of Cinnamon Dolce.” Sometimes I tell people that’s our dog’s full name.

How do you work through self-doubts and fear? I keep my eye on the prize, whatever that may be. I am very goal oriented, so I visualize succeeding at my goals, and I set a variety of intermediate goals. I find that even if I have one big dream, there’s usually some smaller steps I can take that will get me one step closer.

What scares you the most? I have the typical fears, like spiders, snakes, flying, drowning in a submerged vehicle. But mostly what scares me is loss. I don’t want to lose the people I love. I’ve already lost my son and brother, and that pain is something I don’t want to experience, although it is inevitable.

What makes you happiest? I am happiest when all is right with my little world—when my family is happy, the sun is shining, and I am writing my next novel.

What’s your greatest character strength? Loyalty, perhaps. I am loyal to a fault. You don’t want to mess with my family or friends.

What’s your weakest character trait? Impatience, perhaps. Though I do my best, I sometimes find my patience to be lacking when dealing with people who aren’t as organized as I am. I have a very hard time dealing with procrastinators or those who wait for someone else to do their jobs/tasks.

Procrastinators are the worst. Just ask my husband…hehe

Why do you write? I write because I love creating the worlds, characters and stories that populate my mind on a daily basis. And it’s the only way to turn off the voices I hear. Yes, I hear voices—my characters’ voices. Sometimes they’re impatient with me because it’s not the right time to write or I have other priorities. But once I am buried in creating a novel, everyone is happy. J Especially me. It’s the only way to shut them up!

Have you always enjoyed writing? Yes! I wrote when I was a kid. Perhaps it was the attention I received from my teachers or perhaps it was because I was shy and bullied in school, but whenever I wrote something that I felt was good and a teacher read it in class, I was amazingly happy. I knew then that I wanted to be a writer.

What motivates you to write? Those noisy character voices in my head! And knowing I have a really great plot idea and compelling characters with flaws. I love flawed characters!

What writing are you most proud of? That’s a hard one; its like asking a parent of 12 kids which child they’re most proud of. My “heart book” is WHALE SONG, and that’s because it has changed people’s lives for the better, something I never really expected. It has saved relationships and lives. CHILDREN OF THE FOG and SUBMERGED are probably my best works to date and both deal with fears that I have had—the fear of a child being abducted and the fear of being trapped in a submerged vehicle. The one title I am proud of because of outstanding sales is CHILDREN OF THE FOG. It is my #1 bestseller and has sold over 60,000 copies.