Vivi Hernandez

Tell us more about yourself:
     I’m married, and my husband’s a chef. We’ve been married 14 years, and our marriage has been blessed with 3 lovely daughters who we’ve named, Maegan-14, Sofia-10, and Nigella-2.

     I’m a teacher by profession. I work for an English Language Academy for Koreans. I’ve been in this company for more than 6 years, teaching Koreans the English language.

What do you usually do on your free time? Any hobbies?
     I usually spend my free time with my children. All three of them have acquired my passion for reading. So, on weekends, after all the housework is done, all of us would stay in the bedroom, each with a book to read. And, we do this activity with rock music in the background.

     Oh, of course, I write my stories.

What are the places that you would want to visit in the future?
     My top 3 are: Moscow, New York, and London; in that order.

Three things that you’re addicted to:
     Books, BigMac and yosi; in that order

Five things you tend to splurge on
     BOOKS, CDs, BIG MAC, BREAD from Le Coeur de France, YOSI

What book/s are you reading right now?
     Red Rabbit by Tom Clancy

What is your favorite color? Blue – all shades
What’s your favorite midnight snack? A piece of dark chocolate: the Goya brand and of course, coffee
What are some of your favorite vacation spots? My room, where I can have quiet time for reading. Really, I haven’t had a vacation for a long, long time now.
Favorite ice cream flavors: Double chocolate and pistachio
Favorite pizza toppings: PEPPERONI
Favorite non-alcoholic drink: Coca Cola and coffee
Favorite alcoholic drink: Beer
Favorite things in your bedroom: Books, CDs and CD player
Favorite fruits: Peach and apple
Favorite holiday: Christmas
Favorite song as of now: Make it Mine by Jason Mraz
Favorite street food: Fish balls and Isaw
Favorite comfort foods: Dark chocolate
Favorite movies: Air Force One, The Fugitive, Indiana Jones series, The Rock, The Negotiator, It Could Happen to You, National Treasure series, Face/Off
Favorite line from a movie:
     “Get off my plane!” from Air Force One
     “I didn’t kill my wife!”
     “I don’t care!” from The Fugitive

What’s your status right now? Are you single, married, or it’s complicated?
     I’m married . . . blissfully.
Love is like….?
     …coffee. It’s never failed to comfort me after an entire day of work, and I see my kids still up, waiting for me when I get home.
Love makes the world….?
     …uncomplicated. It’s just so easy to figure things out about life when it’s focused on love.
What’s your first love like?
     Foolish. I was in first year high school, in-love with the top senior guy, who never laid an eye on me.
What’s the one thing you won’t do for love?
     Turn my back on my faith in God.
Do you believe that everyone has a soulmate?
     Yes. Of course. God made a woman for every man as He thought it was not healthy for any man to be alone.
Roses and Chocolates….Romantic or Corny?
     Romantic. But, I prefer orchids. And, make sure they’re dark chocolates
Long-distance relationships….Go for it or Run away from it?
     That’s a big NO for me. It’s happened to me once and it wasn’t a very pleasant experience.
Muscular men in tight fitting shirt and jeans….Sexy or Nasty?
     Kadiri!!!
Isang Linggong Pag-ibig….True love or Kabaliwan?
     Hindi pag-ibig iyon! It’s merely a sudden surge of libido. People who willingly go through such a thing should be stoned to death!

What made you decide to write romance?
     My friend, Lorry Virgo, encouraged me to do so. She’d already been writing romance when she learned that I’m also a published writer; text book nga lang. She suggested that I give romantic stories a shot.
     Well, I did. And, wow! This is so much fun! I have finally found a place for my daydreams.
Where do you usually get your inspiration….in writing sex/sexy scenes? Do you use your OWN experiences?
     Generally, I use my imagination which I believe is quite creative. But, I guess it’s normal to consider our own experiences. It’s also helpful to consider others that my husband and I haven’t done yet. Ha ha!
What’s your writing process like? Where do you get ideas? How many hours a day (or days? Months? Years?) Do you work on a single manuscript?
     I do it for 10 minutes every hour at work. I work 8-5; sometimes, 8-8. Please don’t make me compute how much that is . . .
     On weekends, well . . . only when the kids are playing or asleep. I prefer playing or reading with them when I’m at home.
     My ideas usually come from previous experiences; my own or somebody else’s. Music also helps. Actually, it gives me loads of inspiration.
     I’m one person who cannot multi-task. So, I just work on a single story at a time.
Who is your favorite author? Would you say that your writing style is similar to him/her?
     Tom Clancy. I love his Jack Ryan series. Clancy is quite technical in his writing. He gives his readers a picturesque description of places, people, processes, and loads of other interesting things.
     Reading his books takes me to a lot of different places I could only dream about; like inside a submarine, or inside the Situation Room in the White House, or inside the Pentagon, or inside Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow, or . . . .
     What I would love to learn from him is how to present several points of view at the same time. Clancy really does it incredibly well. Idol!
How do you deal with writer’s block?
     Never ever stop day dreaming. And, always remember that love, actually, is all around.
In all honesty, what are the joys of writing romance novels?
     It’s the fulfillment that you get when you know that you are able to designate words to every idea you have. From these words, you create sentences to make the ideas clear. From these sentences you are able to build an entire story.
     Fulfilling, because once your story is done, that’s the time you are able to share your dreams to everyone.

Ang taong nagpapasaya ng bonggang-bongga sa akin ay si….?
     Apat silang lahat. Ang mister ko, at ang tatlo naming anak.
Ang paborito kong bad word ay….?
     “Lintik!”
Madali kong magustuhan ang mga taong….?
     . . . mahilig magbasa.
Ayaw ko sa mga taong mahilig sa….?
     . . . vanity talks. ‘Di kasi ako mahilig sa make-up, mamili ng mga mamahaling damit at sapatos, mag-lagi sa beauty parlor nang buong araw. Hindi talaga ako maka-relate sa kanila.
     I’m a very simple person. Books and music lang talaga.
Ang pinaka-astig na taong kilala ko ay si….?
     Sofia, and pangalawa kong anak. She has this couldn’t-care-less attitude about what other people think. Isusuot lang niya ang gusto niyang isuot. Tatakbo, tatalon, tatawa, gagawin ang mga bagay.. all in her own peculiar way. Grabe! Astig!
Hindi masarap ang hamburger kapag walang…?
     Mustard.
Hindi kumpleto ang araw ko kapag walang….?
     Yosi at kape
Hindi masaya ang party kapag walang….?
     Beer
Ang pamilya ay walang kwenta kapag….?
     . . . walang pagpapalitan ng mga kuro-kuro.
Masarap manood ng sine kapag….?
     . . . may kasama, at ka-share sa popcorn.
Iiyak ako kapag nawala….?
     . . . ang isa sa mga Tom Clancy books ko
Masarap maging lalaki kasi….?
     . . . nakakalakad sila sa kalye nang walang pang-itaas kapag mainit ang panahon.
Boring ang buhay kapag….?
     . . . sex.
Masakit magmahal kapag….?
     . . . hindi ka mahal ng minamahal mo.
Masarap magbasa ng My Special Valentine pocketbooks kapag ako ay nasa….?
     . . . MRT. Kahit na madalas ay lumalampas ako ng istasyon.