Strangely Funny Interview: Cheryl Zaidan!

Cheryl Zaidan is a full-time marketer, part-time writer and hardcore dreamer who enjoys creating fictional characters just so she can do bad things to them. 

When did you know you wanted to become a writer?
I'm a lover of words so I suppose it was inevitable. I've always enjoyed writing both fiction and non-fiction and have done quite a bit of freelance writing in the past. I have to admit, I used to love writing short stories, but for awhile my creativity was stalled. It wasn't until I decided to stop censoring my imagination and embrace the weird, that the words started to flow again.

The main characters in your story are male. What's the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?
Oh boy, I love writing characters that are nothing like myself regardless of sex. It's so much fun to get into somebody else's head, embrace their mannerisms, their dialect etc. even if they ARE fictional. I also like a lot of diversity so whether they're male or female, they come from different places and all walks of life. Poor hapless Rufus who I wrote for this story was a blast to create, although the spellchecker didn't like his language sometimes. I still can't convince Microsoft Word that "ain't" is what I meant to write.

What is the most difficult part of your creative process?
Sitting down and actually doing it. I just started writing and submitting in earnest late last year and it's been fun, but it took longer than I'd like to admit to get a little serious about it. Also I only write when I feel like it and don't force myself when I don't. That goes against all the rules that tell you that writers must write everyday, but hey, my muse only works part-time. 

What is your current project and can you share a little of it with us?
I'm working on a writing site/blog at www.CherylZWrites.com and I'm also planning on editing one of the many, many novels I've written during National Novel Writing Month. I'm a big proponent of that program. 

What do you like to do when you're not writing?
Well, working. But also reading, yoga, watching horror movies, listening to music and bugging friends and family.

What's next for Cheryl?
Cheryl's next story is called "Ugly Eyes" and will be featured in the ezine "The Asylum Diaries – Autopsy."

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Thank you for visiting with us!
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Strangely Funny VI is now available in print and Kindle on Amazon, and is currently free on Kindle Unlimited.

Be sure to check out Cheryl's story, "Interview with Rufus Crain: Rorkson County." A man with a case of the beer goggles meets a mysterious woman. Next thing he knows, he's talking to the police.