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Interview Friday with Dr. Aaron Chokan


Dr. Chokan has been a successful, practicing foot and ankle specialist for 10 years.  Currently, he is owner and founder of Ohio Foot and Ankle Center with 4 locations in Northeast Ohio.  He lives in Hudson, Ohio with his loving wife and 5 children: Hunter, Reece, Finlay, Calais and Lucia and their dog Paisley.  Dr. Chokan is an avid golfer and tennis player.


VS: I want to thank you for being my guest here on The Writing Mama today. What do you do to help balance your writing life with your family life?

Chokan: In my life, I have such a wonderful wife who is able to care for our children and keep our life in order. She is the glue to our whole family. My writing life seems to be able to keep it separate since it does not consume me. My kids are my palate and my template that I follow and without them, I have no stories.

VS: How long have you been writing?

Chokan: About a year.

VS: What inspired you to write your book?

Chokan: My inspiration was my daughter Calais.  She has a beautiful soul and she is truly such a love in the family.  She loves her dog Paisley so much that her “pet” name for her is her “chub-chub” She wears her heart on her sleeve and is so giving and caring that she was the perfect person to write about.  One day I told my wife that I was going to write a story about her and the dog (lai lai and chub chub).  It is a reality and she loves to read it every night.

VS: What is a typical writing day like for you?

Chokan: Typical writing day for me consists of working and seeing patients and then getting home to put all my kids to bed, have some dinner, give them all kisses goodnight and then I turn off the TV. and sit with my computer and start to jot some ideas down. 

VS: Is your family supportive of your writing?

Chokan: Very, they are even supportive by helping me with marketing them.  They love the idea, I am the first to write a story and become an author.

VS: If this isn’t your first publication, what was the first thing you ever had published?

Chokan: This is my first and there will be others.

VS: Can you share with us a little about your current book(s)?

Chokan: My book is about the struggle of a little girl to name her pet dog.  She watches, listens and uses nature to help her choose a name for her pet.  She finds it difficult and even uses audience participation to help her find the perfect name and the overall joy that she has once she chooses the name.

VS: What did you find to be the most challenging part of writing your book(s)?
Chokan: The most challenging is getting it started and then tying in the ending of the story.  I do find it difficult to use the best wording that is not too challenging for the reader to read.

VS: What part of your book do you feel really stands out to you personally?

Chokan: The main part that stands to me personally is the audience participation and the pictures are all charactures of my family.

VS: Do you have any other works in progress? Can you share a little about them?

Chokan: I have another start of the second book titled:  Lai-Lai and Chub Chub’s Fairy Secret.

VS: What tips can you give writing parents with children at home to help them see publication?

Chokan: I would think that you really have to have dedication, time and heart to make this happen.  Understand that you and your children will love the final product and to just have hope that the end is near. 

VS: What do you think are the basic ingredients of a good book?

Chokan: Imagination, emotion and a great story.

VS: What is required for a character to be believable? How do you create yours?

Chokan: I think what makes the character believable is how it is perceived.  Make the story heartfelt and real.  I created mine because I live with her all day and it makes it easy for me to talk about such a beautiful person like Calais.

VS: What do you feel as parents we need to do to help our children see success?

Chokan: I think that if we show great examples and to be excited about everything in their lives makes them understand success.  There will always be failures and losses but we need to make sure that we over exemplify the successes and the excitements in their lives.

VS: Where can the readers of The Writing Mama find out more about and your writing?

Chokan: www.amazon.com and also on my facebook page.  www.facebook.com/lailaichubchub

About the Book:
The book Lai-Lai Meets Chub-Chub is a book about a young preschool girl (mirrored after my daughter Calais) who struggles to find the "perfect" name for her new puppy. She spends her day outside learning how nature can truly give her ideas for a name. She also asks for listener participation by asking the reading audience for some help. She finally comes up with the name Chub-Chub and is delighted.


You can find out more about Dr. Aaron Chokan, his picture book series and World of Ink Author/Book Tour at http://tinyurl.com/clmogvy

Follow Dr. Aaron Chokan at http://tinyurl.com/clmogvy
Facebook http://facebook.com/lailaiandchubchub


To learn more about the World of Ink Tours visit http://worldofinknetwork.com  
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