CBC: The Sessions (a.k.a. The Review Book)

Interview with Nat Marie

Name: Natalie Wolicki

Wattpad username: natmarie

Favourite quote: I, too, collect quotes in a beat up composition book (and on a Pinterest board or five). Must be what the cool kids are doing.

Doesn't everyone / want to be adored / to the point of poetry? - Tyler Knott Gregson

Currently writing:

I suffer from self-diagnosed writing ADD. It is more difficult than it should be for me to stick to one or two stories. And I'm slightly addicted to co-writing. So, long story short - lots. I'm actively working on editing Drunk on Love, rewriting my completed draft of The Art of Spontaneity, and finishing up my sequel in verse, 26 Letters (when the mood strikes).

Currently reading:

Aside from finishing up some of your lovely works, I'm reading Love Anthony by Lisa Genova (same author of Still Alice - just as gripping and heart wrenching and equally as fascinating) and starting Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen.

Currently eating/drinking a lot of:

Right now, I'm in a love-hate relationship with Nutella and drowning in iced tea and chai anything.

Favourite non-literary hobby:

I'm a Pinterest addict, who would rather look than create. It's never pretty when I do. Much like Ara, I'm a stress cleaner too. And I embrace it wholeheartedly.

Authors who you love:

I've found myself falling in love with spoken word poetry more and more lately - Tyler Knott Gregson and Sarah Kay to be precise. For more introspective pieces I'm all in for John Green ala Looking for Alaska, Markus Zusak for his deathly narrator and Shel Silverstein for his story about a boy and a tree (but is really about SO much more). I'll always have a fond place in my heart for childhood favorites like L.M. Montgomery and Meg Cabot. Let's not get started on how I still want to be Anne Shirley when I grow up and long have a cat named Fat Louie. Really, I could go on all day; I have 8 bookcases in my house on the verge of overflowing.

Tell us about how you started writing:

From a young age I was a 10-books-from-the-library-a-week kind of girl and that love of reading and words gave way to a love for writing. I just didn't fully realize it until middle school or fully appreciate it until Freshman year of college. And then there was that day in Brit Lit, when Dr. R. recited Jabberwocky and then Beowulf (in old English) back to back from memory, when I realized I could make a career out of being the biggest English nerd ever. It was epic.

I grew up writing too much for essay assignments and actually enjoying poetry. I got more creative in high school and joined a writing site akin to an old school Wattpad to share my work with the anonymous internet world. In college I befriended more creative writing types and ran with ideas more. I still wrote too long of essays (20 page capstone paper on gender roles in Little Woman, anyone?) but began to trust myself more in fiction and thanks to an odd romantic circumstance and crush on a spoken word poet, started dabbling in poetry and novels in verse. Fast forward a few years and here we are, hooray!

Would you like to write for a living? If so, why/not?

Can I cop out and answer - maybe? I am not sure if I would be any good at writing for a living. Don't get me wrong, I love it, I teach it daily, but I do not do well with forced writing. I am terrible with structure in my writing like outlines and designated writing time. I clam up and get a case of "the block" or whatever you deem to call it. Deadlines give me a certain level of anxiety. That said, it is hard for me to go a day without writing something large or small. I feel a strange sense of counterproductivity when I don't write. So there's that. Alas, I default to maybe. I'd definitely give it a shot, but I'm not sure if it would stick.

Why did you pick this story to be featured?

Drunk on Love and I have been through a lot together. It was the first draft I ever finished after starting life as a short story eight years ago. It blends nuances of my life and people I've met with scenarios from my imagination. It has always been one of my most popular stories but has failed to get much constructive feedback or commentary. This is just one of the many reasons why you guys are awesome. Oh yeah, and it has a chick in it (don't let her hear you call her that) and she likes lit.

What inspired you to write this story?

A confusing break up, a coma-inducing amount of ice cream, receiving my first in long string of "friend" wedding invites and the song Dark Blue by Jack's Mannequin. Not necessarily in that order.

What is your favourite relationship in this story?

I think how people connect with their family can be telling. That said, I've also been blessed with some pretty amazing people in my life that are like a second family to me. As a result, and because they are fun to write, my answer is Becca and her best friend, Emily. They balance each other out nicely, while also pushing one another to be the best versions of themselves that they can be. Hopefully, the relationship between Nick and Becca isn't too shabby either. I think they push each other in different ways. Only time will tell if you too will become a Necca shipper.

What do you think makes this story stand out?

I started writing this story in college. I realized then that there were a lot of books about teens and about what I saw as adults, but not much, if any, about those caught in the middle. Now there is a whole evolving genre of "new adult" (which is awesome). But this started out as an endeavor to see myself and my friends in what I read. And hopefully that shows - because if you know where to look they are there, or maybe your own friends are hiding out.

I believe Becca and her story take some standard cliches (which can be great in their own rite) and twist them, leaving the reader wondering exactly what will happen next. Some readers have also said that I'm occasionally funny, often sarcastic, and make swoon worthy male characters - bonuses really, right?

What do you hope readers take away from this story?

I hope readers are able to see a bit of themselves in Becca and her story. Everyone has had a tough decision to make. Everyone has to learn to trust themselves and listen to the voice in their head - whether it is a friend with a British accent or a conscience four amaretto sours in. Pasts creep up, futures remain elusive. Hopefully it helps readers consider their own lives - realize when to hold on, when to let go and when to let life take control. Excuse my poetic Hallmark card sounding reply. It's late here and it has a tendency to spurt out without permission.