REALM MAKERS WRAPUP: In which Faith has a panic attack in the airport, eats zebra cakes at 11:30pm, and TALKS TO PROFESSIONALS ABOUT HER BOOK?!

by R.F. Gammon - August 03, 2019

Today: Candids. Both in images and in words. I'm gonna tell y'all the truth and I hope you're braced for it, because I will be getting emotional.

Realm Makers was one of the best weekends of my life.

I worked a grueling job for five months and saved almost every penny I earned. I fought for the time to go, convinced my dad to go along with me, paid out over $2,000, and got on an airplane at 8:00am to be able to do this.

And it was worth every penny and second I poured into it.

Savannah Grace, Hanna Rothfuss, me, and Nicole Dust

THURSDAY

I woke up at 5:30am, unable to sleep. My heart was richoceting around in my chest at about 95mph, and I couldn't get back to sleep for the remaining thirty minutes I had before my alarm, so I just went ahead and got up. Which is fine--it gave me time to pack my stuff and make sure I was ready to go. My sweet 14-year-old sister got up early to make me and my dad breakfast, and we got to eat that before we left. Such a blessing.

We drove to the Portland International Jetport, boarded a plane, and flew to LaGuardia in New York. It was a bit of a stressful time for me--I'd bought my tickets purposely so that we wouldn't have to get up at 3:00am, but that left us with very little wiggle room on the tickets. Initially I was supposed to land in St. Louis, Missouri, at 1:30 in the afternoon. But due to delays both scheduled and on the tarmac, we ended up flying in at 3:30. I ate a hot dog in the airport, texted people hysterically, and tried not to let my panic attacks take over. We landed in MO at 3:00 and, while it took a little while to locate the shuttle, we did find it and headed for the hotel.

And when we got to the hotel...oh my word.

I walked in the front door to an entire welcoming committee.

A few words of backstory: I've never fit in with groups. Never. I almost always end up going into groups of people and ending up sitting alone, singled out, or sad. People in person don't usually like me. So while I knew my blogging friends and I were close, I was fully prepared for that possibility. I knew I'd love them in person...but I didn't know if they'd actually like me.

I should never have doubted.

I walked in the door of the hotel and found Christine, Tracey, Skye, Hanna, Katie, Mary, Tracey, and probably several other people I'm forgetting waiting for me. And I know I went into shock and just kinda hugged everyone with my heart pounding and my face turning red and my fingertips going numb and dehydrated and thinking what am I doing here. My anxiety flared...and then I realized they were all there to see ME.

my welcoming committee...I adore y'all

And I will tell y'all honestly...there is nothing in the world that feels good like that. Like being wanted. Like you walked in the door and found your family waiting for you.

Honestly, it would have been worth it for that moment alone.

I walked down the hallway to register, by myself, after checking into my hotel room (which had considerably more hiccups than anything going on at the actual conference, haha). On the way down the hallway a voice shouted "GAMMON!!!!" and I turned around to see Julian Daventry, her sister Evan, and Sarah Rodecker sitting in the window. More hugs! More squealing! More friends!

(The blogging community is amazing, y'all, I can't get over how blessed I am to have it.)

Then I found Nicole Dust, who ended up being probably the person I stuck the closest to throughout the whole conference xD She's amazing and I adore her wholeheartedly and I have GOT to see her again sometime because ahhhhh I love her so much xD

Nicole and me!

Brent Weeks was the opening keynote speaker and he was brilliant. I haven't read any of his books and I didn't pick them up while I was at the conference, but his speech was great.

God can use us even if we're screwups. ~Brent Weeks

For dinner about twenty of us went over to Panera and it was delicious. It was so surreal to sit down with all my friends and just BE for a little while--I love my friends, guys. I ADORE them. <3

all of us at dinner

I also talked to some of my dear friends in the hallway for a good amount of time after dinner. There was an agent Q&A, a new attendee orientation, and much money was spent at the bookstore before I went to Savannah Grace and Hanna Rothfuss's hotel room to watch Wonder Woman at about eleven o'clock at night. I did have to leave around midnight because I was so sleepy and knew I was going to have to be up early the next morning, but it was an amazing and surreal and beautiful first day.

Release party for Lindsay Franklin's The Story Raider!

Quotes on Thursday

Nicole: "Raise the character stakes. Put him in a coma!"

Me: "I already did that!!!!"

Random person in the audience: "How do you get into the editorial, soul-crushing side of the writing industry?"

Steve Laube: "Become a cyborg."

Airport shuttle guy: You folks here for work?

Me: No, we're here for a conference!

Him: Ah. Realm? Makers?

Me:....

FRIDAY

Friday started out softly--I was exhausted for LITERALLY the entire day thanks to jetlag, and I could barely see through the mental fog on my face for parts of my classes. My dad took me to McDonald's for breakfast. LESSON LEARNED: McDonald's has really good ice coffee.

Then I went up to the hospitality suite, where breakfast was served again, and met TRICIA MINGERINK. You guys, I got to meet my most favorite author of ever, and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. (And no, I didn't get any pictures with her. I was too shy. xD)

The bad news is that at that point I lost my wallet. And I found this out later in the day, when I had a panic attack in my teen track class and spent most of that session running all over the hotel looking for it. I texted my parents. I texted my friends. I screamed at people. I am really not proud of how I acted. (All this to say: Realm Makers is not just fun and games. There's a very real amount of stress in there too. VERY VERY real.) I'm so thankful to the guy running the hospitality suite--he found my wallet, returned it to me, and became the hero of the moment. I appreciate him more than I can say. XD

With that unpleasant little incident out of the way, I can talk now about my classes on Friday xD The first class I went to was my continuing session, Teen Track, taught by Bryan Davis.

Me, Nicole, and Angela at Teen Track!

Bryan Davis taught an incredibly helpful class on writing, the hero's journey, and writing style. Some of it felt a little bit more basic than what I needed, but for the most part it was concise, clear, and Helpful and made me realize that I really need to rework the whole beginning of my book xD
LESSONS LEARNED: When your character succeeds, there always has to be at least one person who recognizes it and tells them so.

Then I went to Morgan L. Busse's class on organic worldview, which may be one of the most helpful classes I've been to. She talked about how to write Jesus and God into your novels but do so organically, so that you aren't preaching but you are letting the truth come through.
LESSONS LEARNED: The God you know will always be evident in your story, whether you're writing explicitly Christian material or not.

After lunch at Fuzzy's Tacos with Mary Horton, Hanna Rothfuss, and Madeline J. Rose, I went to more of the teen track and then had a mentor appointment with Jill Williamson--so much good advice from her ;) Highlights of the second bit of the Teen Track include the part when Bryan Davis turned on a scene from Lord of the Rings to demonstrate his point...and the sound decided it didn't like him and didn't want to work. So we watched Lord of the Rings with no sound. FUN TIMES, everyone. xD

I attended a panel on self-publishing vs. traditional publishing, then went and talked to some friends for a while. (You guys, Skye Hoffert is a genius and she may have forced me to rewrite my whole book, but it's going to be WORTH IT. I owe her my life at this point and so does my protagonist. xD) I think I went to the bookstore after that--I don't remember for sure, but I do know that I went to my room for about two hours and rested.

The absolutely amazing Skye Hoffert (feat. my face doing something that scares even me)

THEN...okay, guys, then it was time for the costume party.

(Photo dump incoming. You have been warned.)

I went as the Florid Sword from the Wingfeather Saga series and it was an absolute blast to see so many friends! And some people's costumes...GOOD GRAVY *screams*

Nicole Dust as Luna Lovegood

From left to right: Evan MD, Sarah Rodecker, Nicole Dust, and me

Savannah Grace as the most adorable Peggy Carter ever

Christine Smith as Kuzco (BOOM, BABY!)

The beautiful Angela R. Watts as the Mad Hatter

Deborah O'Carroll as one of my all-time favorite characters, Selene from Mark of the Raven!

Selena Gonzalez as Scarlett from Caraval!

Skye Hoffert as Blue Sargent of The Raven Boys

Tracey Dyck as Tris Prior

Mary Horton as a steampunk Little Mermaid

Hanna Rothfuss as Eowyn!

Julian Daventry as a minstrel (yes, that's a real mandolin!)

Sarah Rodecker as Eowyn!!!!

It was such an overwhelming night and so much fun went down and AHHHHH. I wish I could've stayed longer and been able to interact with more people, but I was so tired at this point that I had to go to bed at about 10:30 and actually went straight to bed. Jet lag is a beast, y'all. But it was a pretty darn amazing day.

Some more highlights of this day:
-There was a piano in the room (!!!) so Julian and I literally played the Phantom of the Opera, Doctor Who, and various other songs on it and it was SO MUCH FUN
-Jill Williamson came as the White Witch and her costume was fantastic
-A panelist at the small press panel said "Oh, spoilers, sweetie" when someone asked her a question and I died (River Song, y'all)
-"Take the picture, I'm blacking out" (If you know, you know)
-A bunch of people went as members of a Steampunk Justice League and they made me an honorary member of the Justice League as the Florid Sword
-did I mention that McDonald's ice coffee is really really good????
-FUN TIMES ALL AROUND OKAY

SATURDAY

I just have to say, I am so thankful that I woke up feeling better that day. The jetlag was mostly gone and I can't say how glad I was for that. It meant I actually got to do some stuff and feel decent, which is a good thing because I HAD TWO PITCH APPOINTMENTS AND A PAID CRITIQUE ON THIS DAY!!!!!

We went and got breakfast in the hospitality suite, and then I sat down with Skye, Katie, their friend Ashley, and a couple of other people and we just chatted for a little while, which was amazing. I can't even say how much I love these girls. <3 We went down to the opening and had some announcements and other such things before Hanna Rothfuss and I both had to leave for our respective pitch appointments, which were both happening at the same time. We prayed together (that's just the coolest feeling, y'all, my word) and then went to our appointments.

My first pitch was with Lesley Sabga, and it went REALLY REALLY WELL. I'm not going to give any details because I'm paranoid (lol), but I do want to say that it went amazingly. Be enthusiastic when talking about your story, people! I would not call myself an expert by any means, but I do think that my excitement about my story helped me out quite a bit.

Bryan Davis's third session was mostly about villains, writing a good climax, and stuff like that, which was super fun and worthwhile. Every time he talked about raising the stakes, Angela and I ended up shooting each other LOOKS. And then, of course, when he was talking about cliffhangers, Nicole wrote the word DEATH on her notes in giant letters and shoved it in my face (for anyone who's read my book: y'all, I'm never going to live that down.)

Then I had my paid critique. YOU GUYS. YOUUUU GUUUUUYYYYYYS. That may well have been one of the coolest, best, most incredible experiences of my life. I got to meet with Morgan L. Busse for a full 30 minutes, and in that time, I'm pretty sure I fixed my protagonist, got my conflict fleshed out, made a full-blown character arc, and screamed about how much I loved her books. And the best part is that when I got excited about her books, SHE GOT EXCITED ABOUT HER BOOKS TOOOOOO. Most coolest experience ever.

MORGAN BUSSSEEEEEEEE *screams*

I got lunch at Fuzzy's Tacos again and saw basically every single person I'm friends with xD Then, because we're writers and we don't know how to sleep, we had to stop at Starbucks and get some coffee. Someone thought it was a good idea to let me have Sprite, coffee, AND a frappucino. (Oh, right, that was me.) Pro tip for next year: Don't let Faith drink Sprite if she actually slept. She will overload on sugar and you will all die.

my sweet friends

a little hard to see but that's me, Sarah, and Evan

I went to a worldbuilding class by Jill Williamson next (so many good things to remember!) and then had another pitch. I don't think this one went quite as well (it was with Alyssa Roat and I was a good bit more nervous, so I completely fumbled my elevator pitch and talked forever and just knew I was losing interest with every word I said...) but I still did it and have writing to send in and I think it's worth it xD

My last class was a panel I attended with Angela about how to write things that are grittier than PG-13 and still do it in a God-honoring way. That class was superbly helpful, especially since I'm looking at writing a New Adult World War II novel and there's no way on this earth I can keep that "clean". So...we'll see how that goes xD I thought much of what was said on that panel is going to be extremely helpful, though.

Then we went to Panera again for dinner. So much fun. So much love for my people. I adore you all <3

MY PEOPLE, y'all. I can't get over this. The fact that I can look at this awesome gang of writers and call them MY PEOPLE.

The book festival was a thing. I got lots of books signed. I did stuff. It was awesome. I was tired at that point. It was fun though. I promise.

Some other things on Saturday:

-"Don't worry--I haven't beheaded anyone yet."

-Going outside at night to take pictures of all the pretty lights in the courtyard

-Deadpan Panera worker clearing dishes while I loudly yelled something about stabbing characters (she probably thinks I'm a psycopath)

-Starbucks time was so lovely

-I met so many awesome people

-Business card exchanges

-Watching Wonder Woman and eating zebra cakes at 11:30 at night

-"And then the missionaries took over the world!" <----things overheard at Realm Makers (yeah I said it but it was funny)

-it's kind of a niche but isn't it funny how superhero movies like to have guys named Chris play guys named Steve who ride motorcycles wildly through the woods

-HUGS

-Did I mention my pitches actually went well

-somehow I kept up with the Go Teen Writers 100-for-100 every day this weekend and I'm still amazed by that

-Nicole, if you're reading this, WHERE IS YOUR INSTAGRAM

SUNDAY

This was a day of goodbyes. And amazingness. And hugs. And riding the shuttle with Katie Hanna because our flights left at the same time.

We got home in the evening and it was a long day, but still good. I slept a lot Sunday night and then got up the next morning to see my best friend in the entire world for ten days (which is a whole other story and will not merit its own blog post xD). I'm tired. I'm really tired. But oh, what a weekend.

God was so present in Realm Makers.

My friends were all there, in person, and I got to hug them all.

I was encouraged.

People prayed for me when I lost my wallet.

I took breaks and no one judged.

I drank coffee and no one judged.

I got such great writing advice.

I met my writing heroes.

I took pictures.

I made memories.

I fixed my story and I think it's going to be better now.

Overall, I had a fantastic weekend.

Yeah, I'd recommend Realm Makers ;) Glowingly. And I hope I'll see you next year in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Because I'm going to be there. And I'm taking roommate bids. xD

Tags :

38 comments

Sarah RodeckerAugust 3, 2019 at 7:47 AM
Great! Now I'm on the brink of tears because THIS POST! I'm feeling all the feels. What a weekend RM was!!

@Nicole: way to go calling Faith out when I couldn't. But, and this is very important, WHERE IS YOUR INSTA?! You promised us!!

But in all seriousness, it was a delight meeting you! I'm planning to go next year, Lord willing. And I would take you up on the roommate bid, but I think my brother is hoping to come so we'll probably just end up with our own room. But I will do my best to be your welcoming committee if I'm there before you are.
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Nicole DustAugust 3, 2019 at 10:00 AM
I WILL GET INSTA EVENTUALLY, I PROMISE, OKAY?????? XD XD XD THIS HAS BEEN THE BUSIEST WEEK EVER. NEXT WEEK I WILL HAVE MORE TIME.

(and I do not apologize for DEATH. it was a good ending.)

It was SO AMAZING meet you Faith! (And I agree, we have GOT to do this again sometime because AAAAAAHHHH. This is an AMAZING wrap-up post! <333

And if I can convince my parents to let me go next year (unlikely, but still), see you then!!
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Ivie BrooksAugust 3, 2019 at 11:16 AM
I WANNA GO SO MUCH!!!!! But not to New Jersey that is too far for me to drive because I am NOT flying. Nope, never flying. *crosses arms* I wish it would go to a southern state so I can drive to it. xD ONE DAY PEEPS, ONE DAY YOU WILL SEE ME. XD XD

AAAAAAHHHHHH this post hit me in the feels. <3 <3 <3 <3 you forgot to mention all the screaming we did in the group chat, though. xD xD xD cause I'm pretty sure some of us were screaming loud enough for RM to hear. xD haha jk jk

ALL RIGHT <3 <3 AMAZING POST, DEAR.
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Nicki ChapelwayAugust 3, 2019 at 1:17 PM
Eep this sounds amazing! I'm so glad that you had fun XD
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Tracey DyckAugust 3, 2019 at 1:32 PM
AHHHHH, THIS POST IS LOVELY. *YOU* ARE LOVELY. I'm so happy we got to meet in person and that your first Realmie experience went so well!!!! <333
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AngelaAugust 3, 2019 at 1:47 PM
I AM SO HAPPY TO HAVE MET YOU! ♥ It was sooooo fun and a blessing. You are a wonderful friend!

I'm still pumped your appointment went well and you had so much fun! Sorry again for the panic attacks. *hug*
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MiddleEarthMusicianAugust 3, 2019 at 2:01 PM
FAITH!!! I AM SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!! It looks like you had an ABSOLUTELY lovely time. <33 That conference looks like SO. MUCH. FUN. :-O <33
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Christine SmithAugust 3, 2019 at 5:38 PM
FAAAAAITH! THIS IS SUCH A GREAT RECAP POST. IT WAS SO AMAZING MEETING YOU! I wish we could hang out ALL the time. I JUST LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!! <333333

OF COURSE we were waiting on you! We were SO anxious for you to get there. Stupid plane keeping you away from us for so long. >.> But ugh. It was so great to have you there!

I'm so sorry you were exhausted from the jetlag. And oh my goodness, somehow I missed everything about you losing your wallet. :O AGH. POOR FAITH! Thank God you found it. That sounds awful. Whew. So, so happy it was found.

But I am sooooooo happy you still had such a wonderful time despite these things. AND YOUR APPOINTMENTS. *SQUEALS* Still so very ecstatic about those!

I loved reading every single word of this. Even though we're there together, it's so great to see each person's POV of the whole thing. And just AWK. I got to meet my Faith and it was amaziiiiing! <33333333
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Melissa GravitisAugust 3, 2019 at 6:51 PM
Ahhhhh this sounds so amazing! I'm so glad you had a fantastic time, despite all those moments of stress! And your pitching went well!!! *flails happily for you* Do we get any hints of your next steps then? ;)
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Catherine HawthornAugust 3, 2019 at 7:07 PM
Oh my gosh, Faith!!! Your whole post...gah, I have no words. It was a wonderful ball of awesomeness :).

*eyes bug out* IT'S IN NEW JERSEY NEXT YEAR???? *starts plotting* good grief, I'm gonna have to get a job STAT.
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Katrina MichelleAugust 3, 2019 at 7:28 PM
This sounds like the most beautiful, amazing trip ever!!
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Rakayle HierAugust 3, 2019 at 11:52 PM
Wow looks so so fun!! :)

astordetective.blogspot.com
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Abigail HarderAugust 4, 2019 at 1:40 PM
I am so happy that you had a blast at Realm Makers, Faith!!! I NEED to go one of these years!! I am so excited for you that your pitch went well!!!! I was getting super giddy for you just reading your post, lol! I am happy that you have all these dear memories to hold onto!!! <3
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Chloe the MovieCriticAugust 4, 2019 at 2:49 PM
Yay! I'm so glad that you had an amazing time!! It looks awesome!!
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Skye HoffertAugust 4, 2019 at 4:47 PM
That title is everything! XD
I'm so glad that we were all there to meet you! It was amazing! Just seeing you in person. Ahhh! You're awesome!
I'm shocked that something I said helped that much, but I adore your story so I'm happy I was able to help in some ways! It's a killer story.
*Hugs*
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BlueAugust 4, 2019 at 10:57 PM
I'm loving all these Realm Makers posts-- thanks for sharing, Faith!
I especially enjoy how you add quotes and snippets of the little things that made the conference so memorable. Your costume is magnificent, I'm sorry I didn't see it in person!
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Alexa MintahAugust 5, 2019 at 2:00 PM
Aww, this is such a fantastic post!!!! I'm glad you had such a great time and learned so much!!! The stress at conferences is REAL, but I'm glad you were able to take care of yourself and that it went so well!!! :D

Alexa
thessalexa.blogspot.com
verbosityreviews.com
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Christine EyreAugust 5, 2019 at 3:05 PM
Wow, I am so sorry for the stress you had at Realm Makers! But the friends, classes, and community are SUCH a blessing!!

You made me laugh with the line "Then, because we're writers and we don't know how to sleep, we had to stop at Starbucks and get some coffee." XD Ain't it the truth!!

Oh, the folks at Panera were SO patient with the table full of crazy writers in their restaurant!

Great post! (And I'm definitely hoping and praying I can go to RM next year!)
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Emily GrantAugust 9, 2019 at 8:58 AM
Oh, I know exactly how you feel about the group thing. Very rarely do I feel at home in a group of people, and honestly it's the worst feeling in the world. But I'm so glad you had such a great weekend with your people, and I hope to see you at a conference someday too!!

theonesthatreallymatter.blogspot.com
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