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?
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.
Get a sneak peek of the book at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hBv2FY2_iY&feature=youtu.be
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
To learn more about the World of Ink Tours visit http://worldofinknetwork.com