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Is pleased to present an
AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT WITH
Cassirin

The interviewer, Jessiqua, is in this color
The interviewee, Cassirin, is in this color

HI-diddly-ho WINNERINO! A ginormous congratulations for winning the Queenie Chronicles. For those who don't know you, tell us about yourself.
After all these years, do you think there's anyone left who still wants to hear about me? My name is Erin, but SSers have called me Ern for ages. I've been a member on site for... Gosh, I'm embarrassed to say. Since birth. I live in Ohio, USA.

I would hazard a guess and say each and every one of the 60-something thousand SS members! I'm not going to ask what brought you to SS because I'm going to assume there's something about Harry Potter in there. So, outside of Harry Potter, what is your favourite book or series and how would you promote it to your fellow Snitchseekers?
I love to talk about what brought me here, though! It was fanfiction! But as for other books I love, I've been going through a mystery and crime thriller phase for the last year. I love the books Rowling writes under a pen name, I've been binging old Agatha Christies from the used book store, and I'm always shopping for a new mystery author.

Ah her Cormoran Strike series? I am absolutely going to read those! Well then, speaking of the incredible fanfiction on SS, take us back to when you started dabbling in the art of fanfiction. How long have you been writing?
As long as I've been on site! I joined during our first collaborative fiction event, before even the Riddle Chronicles, and I've been writing ever since. I've done drabbles, one offs, multichapter epics... You name it.

Did you do much writing before joining SS?
I'm a bit of a shy writer. I really needed the community of SS to trust myself enough to write and to share it. I've dabbled some, but not much.

That's a beautiful way to describe the SS community. Sorry, I just have something in my eye *wipes*. Where do you get your writing style? Are there authors you are particularly inspired by?
I don't know that I'm a good judge of that. I sometimes think that I tend toward being overly wordy and stodgy, so I try very hard to find a voice I'd like to read and stay true to that voice. I love the meta, winking style of Douglas Adams or Lemony Snicket, but that's so hard to capture.

I really enjoy how you describe scenes, and the words you use! It's always a joy to read something you've created. Speaking of, what's your writing process? How many drafts are behind your published work?
Oh, thank you! That's so nice! I generally am a 'just get the first draft down' kind of person. It's easier to go back and rewrite what doesn't work or throw away entire paragraphs once I know where I'm going. But I also could tweak until I die, so I usually write, edit, have someone else read, then let it fly.

Oh yeah, it always gets me when I write something and I spend heaps of time on one section only to realise it makes no difference to the story if it's there or not. Do you have trusted people that you always send drafts to, or is a variety of people?
I do have some people who I really trust to read my work for clarity and comprehension and all that. Not for this current event, obviously, but for the big long epics.

Well, speaking of this event, what was your inspiration for your entry for round one?
There were a lot of fun interesting factors to play with - the character of Queenie and what we know about her from the movies, an American setting in the 1910's, and this EXTREMELY vague prompt. I knew I wanted to introduce Queenie in a way that made people in the next round interested in continuing with the next round.

I've certainly been playing with some ideas going from your story! Besides what we see of Queenie on the big screen, what traits do you think she embodies? Good/bad.
I think she's loyal, kind, and empathetic, and it's interesting to wonder what she was like as a teenager and what she went through to make her that way. Some of that would already exist in her personality, but how would she be handling her gift? How does her gift MAKE her that way?

I completely agree! I have to admit she's one of my favourite characters, and partly because of how her loyal, kind, empathetic nature is portrayed. Have you seen FB2?! Do you have any hunches as to the next chapter in Queenie's life?
I've seen it, and I admit that her decisions in that movie have me a bit bewildered. I'm interested to see how long she can justify bad choices for good reasons.

Jakweenie! Are you a shipper or a notter?
I mean, as it stood in the second movie, I want more for sweet cinnamon roll Jacob. But when their relationship was healthy and they respected each other's free will, I was a fan.

That's a great way to put it! WHO is your favourite FB character?
I think Newt is really interesting. His motivations are so pure and he's so bad with people but so good with creatures. I love him. And I actually really love Tina, too. It's cool to see the kick butt crime fighter female character in action.

They are both so great! If you could take one character out for dinner, who would it be and what one question would you like to ask them? Any character, any series.
Are they paying? I think it would depend on the mood I'm in. Like it would be terribly fun to take Hercules Poirot to a murder mystery dinner, or to scandalize Mr. Darcy by taking him out to eat UNCHAPERONED *gasp*. What would be super fun would be to line up a bunch of different characters at the same dinner party and see how they react to each other. Sort of a fictional Big Brother. And so my question would be 'who are we kicking out of the house tonight' which is absolutely not the question you asked.

Well this was the most fun answer to a question ever! Seeing Mr Poirot in action would be amazing. I would pay big bucks to see that! If you were a Legillimens, are there things you think you'd try to listen for? Like... what people think of your new nail polish? Or how they want to help save the world from Dragonpox? Or would you actively try and build a wall?
I have second hand embarrassment issues. I think I'd really hate for people to know all the asinine things that go through my head, and hearing those things from someone else would make me so squirmy! I'd build a wall!

Totally agree! What is your drink of choice?
Diet Dr. Pepper!

I've never had Dr. Pepper! Which Ilvermorny house would you belong in?
Hornedwudgie? Sort of like a Ravenpuff.

Oh nice! That's such a cool sounding name too. And finally, do you have any words of wisdom, from our new Queenie Chronicles ROUND TWO Prompt Master, for those interested in writing a submission?
Just have fun and good luck!