Hello friends! Look at MEEEEE posting again mwahaha. College is starting to grind to a halt, but first it’ll probably run me over like a steam engine, so this maaaaay be the last post y’all see from me for a couple of weeks. We shall see. I’ll definitely have one every week over Christmas break ;) (which starts at Thanksgiving…) 

Or will she >:) 

But for now… today I decided to do a random collab with my bestie Brooke who is remarkably accommodating xD 

Muhahahahha hello >:)

She also has exactly one emoji.

I only have one USEFUL emoji, to be exact. >:)

*insert eye roll* anyway… we’re just going to ramble today! I would pretend to be professional but we all know that would be a lie and I’m just not that kind of person. So today LET’S GO CRAZY and also see how many parentheses I can use in one post (it will be many (more than usual (which is terrifying)))

Oh dear lord. xD She does use a very terrifying amount of parentheses lately. Also neither of us are professional soooooo

Lately? This is always (March 2017 readers where you at???)

Dude yes, I know that’s how you blog XD ←— *has more than one emoji* SO TODAY we thought it would be smart to have us ramble, and idk what will be revealed today. But it will be entertaining to say the least. 

Well, let’s start with this! I’m starting to break out the Christmas music. (Call me a heathen, but this is 2020, so it’s fine this time. I wouldn’t normally do it.) Thoughts???

*Heathens by TOP plays* honestly I was the queen of no Christmas music before Thanksgiving, but I am currently also listening to Trans Siberian Orchestra sooooo it’s 2020 and we can do whatever we want. 

2020 is just… a time tbh. xD (and that’s all I’ll say about that). I’ve been listening to my Christmas playlist on spotify, and currently drinking my tea in my dorm with just Christmas lights on and some lamps. It’s amazing. The aesthetic is just...brilliant.

I want that aesthetic ngl. Seriously, you are the most aesthetic person I’ve met. Wow. Just you do you boo and you do it well ;) 

I am NOOOTTTTTT *sobs* 

Yes you is. <3 

Oh my woooord *sobs harder* anyway, I thought it might be fun to think about some GOOD things that have come out of 2020. LIIIIIKE MY NEW FAVORITE BOOK SERIES, SHADOW AND BONE! (She’s groaning, she KNEW I was going to come back to this…) 

I’m your best friend, of course I did xD but guysss, we did a buddy read for all of Shadow and Bone and someone, not gonna name names or anything *cough* Faith *cough* beat me to reading all three?? She’s super fast, y’all. I don’t know how she does it. (She be a QUEEEEN) but that series is amazing. Faith is marrying Nikolai. We had to decide who got him, BUT then I discovered The Raven Cycle and decided to marry Gansey. I WANTED Ronan Lynch but SOME OF YOU will know why that can’t happen. *sobs*

You and Gansey would do better together though! You’re the compatible ones, you and Ronan are similar and you would fight.

That’s true. I am just gonna say it here and now, I pegged Gansey as an INFJ and I did an internet search. Turns out I was right. Proudest accomplishment ever. But GUYYSS GANSEY IS JUST ACCCKKK *heart eyes* *swoons* Ronan is a bit too much like me, except I don’t cuss like he does. That and one other reason. *httyd2 reference*

*we proceeded to have a private chat, really good, we were both wheezing, too bad y’all missed it. Maybe next time ;)*

Yes that was actually hilarious oh my word xD But going back to S&B because I have to...read it. Read it, please. I will probably do a solo post on it sometime. Thoughts?

*chants* do it. Do it. Do it. 

>:)

Ohhhhh look who’s using the emoji now -_- 

ANYWHOOO, since we’re rambling and winging it, let’s see if I can read your mind >:) ask me questions about Shadow and Bone, concerning your opinions, and I’ll see if I can answer them muahahaha

Oh gosh… This could be fun.

Who are my favorite ship(s)? (There are 2 ;))

SHE SHIPS DARKLING AND ALINA GUYSSS

Jkjk she would never.

She might kill me for that. Rip words in her soul. Muhahha. Okay seriously though, you ship Mal and Alina, then Genya and David. EASY. 

Do not EVER insinuate such a thing again >:( 

Kidding, kidding. (she’s not kidding)

That is correct xD

Muhahahah I know >:) NEXT QUESTION, MATE!

Which book of the three is my favorite? >:)

I would say book three, Ruin and Rising, because the ships are soaring. 

And you would again be correct! Next...hmmm… which of the Iconic Moments is my favorite? 

OOh there are so many that you love so dearly. But… if I had to pick just one… it would be when Alina [spoilers]

Yes that is correct xD For those of you who can’t see that… if you’ve read it, it’s the climax of book 3. But Alina and Mal’s first kiss will forever be one of my favorite moments in book history.

Yesssss. Can we just talk about how I could STILL ship Nikolai and Alina. That is… if I didn’t ship him with you of course. 

He is MINE thank you xD I don’t need a real man when Nikolai exists.

Accurate. xD All right nowwww I’m going to ask YOU three questions about my preferences in The Raven Cycle. Muahaha. And you have to see how well you know me. >:) 

Who is my top ship in the series?

Gansey and Blue *NODNOD*

Yessssssss my children!!! I love them. What Iconic moment (so far) is my favorite. (I’m only in book two guys.)

Hmmmm… we shall go with the glitter scene with throwing people out of windows ;)

YES. Oh my word. Noah and Ronan are my boissss. Yes. And FINALLY… What is my favorite friendship/sentimental moment from the book? >:)

BLUE AND NOAH’S KISS

Um...no. try again. xD 

Uhhhhh…. Well. That. That is a good question. The… uh.

I’m stuck you got me

WAIT

“DREAM ME THE WORLD”

*sobs* Yes. The you and me scene of the book. *sobs harder* Yes. That’s my favorite scene ever. 

We’re going to call that the end of this collab for now, but we will be back sometime soon with another of these! I hope you have as much fun reading this as we did writing it! Leave us some comments below so we can see them >:) and we will BOTH respond.

I will respond faster than she does >:) because I’m faster at that muhahahaha

-_- that’s all folks!

Stay amazing!

 I am tired.

My body is run-down with exhaustion and no matter how much I sleep it's not enough. The deadlines come fast and furious, and college is a sea of masks and papers and exhaustion.

What is the point, I wonder.

This last week, I'll be honest: I sat down and cried over the US election. I strongly dislike both parties and I hate everything about what this election is doing to our country. I very much and very firmly believe that Jesus is on the throne. I believe that he can do ANYTHING he wants out of this. 

But oh, that doesn't mean I have to be excited about the prospect of what's quite possibly coming.

There is so much pain and brutality among our land right now. We're so divided. Sometimes I wonder how long it really will be until the second Civil War. I'm tired. I'm tired.

Saturday night I went to a Halloween party, and it seemed like every time we lost sight of the fact that this wasn't normal, someone started screaming for everyone to social distance. And the moment was broken. And the new normal flooded back in, and the pain was very much there again.

I wear the mask when I can, but the asthma has been getting worse and worse lately as seasonal allergies fluctuate and I've had a couple of minor colds. There are so many people looking to inform me that I must wear a mask, that Covid will hurt me if I get it, that I'm one of the high-risk people. I struggle with that daily--I know the averse effects of my health if I get Covid, but if I wear the mask, the asthma will make daily life a struggle. 

My heart hurts.

And I want to know where I'm going. What my future looks like. They always told me college was a time of transition, but trying to imagine the transition out of here and into the Real World, a world changing and falling apart. 

I'm not sharing this looking for pity.

I share this to say: You are not alone. If you have a strange sense of both security in the Father and a constant halo of question marks swirling about your brain, you aren't alone. God's got it under control. Of COURSE he does. That is a fact.

But the fact doesn't just...get rid of all emotions.

And it's okay to be tired. It's okay to be scared.

We don't know what this world will look like at the end of this week. But humanity continues, and God is still on his throne. There is GOOD in the world still. Maybe we have to look a little harder to find it. But it's there.

So let's all take a breath and give ourselves permission to be tired and to sleep and to take some time off. It's okay if you can't do it all.

You're still enough.

It's hard. It's HARD. Don't forget that it's okay for it to be hard.

And remember: It is enough that Jesus is on the throne.

Maybe it doesn't feel like it yet. But it is.

He is still God. He is still good. 

How are you doing? <3 If you're doing NaNo, how have the first couple days been? Chat with me and tell me how YOU are doing. I want to hear from you.

 Hello, my friends! I keep being insanely sporadic with my posts, but I'm FINALLY here to post again. Today, we're going to deal with how to write a ridiculously shippable romance, using a single example. Yes, I said just one. One example of how to write the perfect relationship (if you ignore the last three songs of the musical).

That relationship is Orpheus and Eurydice from Hadestown.

(all photos in this post courtesy of Pinterest)

If you're into musicals, I would absolutely recommend this musical. It's so powerful, it's (99%) clean, it's got the best romance of ever. It's something I can recommend with almost zero qualms. It will definitely break your heart, though, so bear that in mind (I've already broken both Brooke and Nicole with this, so...yeah).

(I see we're back fast and furious today with the parentheses.)

Today I'm going to do less of actually looking at the plot of Hadestown, and instead going to deal with how to write a romance using Hadestown's Orphydice (a thing?) as a model! So with no further introduction, let's jump in!

1. If your hero is going to be weird, make him endearing

2. Make BOTH characters compelling

3. Give each character their own desires and wants

4. If there's going to be conflict in the relationship, it needs to be something complex for both characters.

5. The single most compelling thing you can do is make the guy willing to go to the ends of the earth for her.

Yes, before I continue, this can go both ways. But come on, ladies. There's just...SOMETHING about a guy fighting through all odds for us that feels like magic. 

I love this trope so much. Orpheus just embodies it so well. He loses sight of his goals--and when that causes him to lose Eurydice, he decides to follow her "to the end of time...to the end of the earth...with all my heart". The songs when he chases her down across the ends of the earth are just *chef's kiss* He doesn't do it through physical strength, but he's still SO strong. And it just....ARGH do this more often, people. Please. My heart. 

In the end, it doesn't matter what the guy fights for her--just let him fight SOMETHING. My little romantic heart will pass out in a flurry of joy. Like literally. There is almost no better way to make me fall in love with a story. 

And there you have it: five fast and furious ways, direct from way down Hadestown, to make your readers love your characters and the romance between them! I hope y'all enjoyed this post ^_^ Let me know your thoughts as regards these topics in the comments below!

 Sometimes, He seems so far away.

Those are the days I have to look around and honestly ask myself: am I seeking? Am I following him? How much do I care? Do I actually understand that I can't make it on my own?

One of the most important things to remember as Christians is that we can't actually do it on our own--but there is the rub. We CANNOT do it on our own. However, with God, we can do it. And that word--do--is so very important.

Christianity isn't just church attendance, or singing, or knowing the truth, or choosing to surround yourself with people who agree. It isn't just sharing the gospel with people. It isn't just raising your hands in worship. All of these things are included, and they are all very much important.

But that's not all Christianity is. It is not a religion that consists of doing works for one's own purposes. My sisters and brothers, we serve a higher calling.

It's all for Him. We are put here, on this earth, for the blink of an eye in comparison to the timeline of the world. We are, as the Psalmist puts it, like the grass of the field, there one day and dead the next. Our good deeds are worth next to nothing. They are the scribbles drawn by a four-year-old in thick red crayon.

But that--THAT is where we see the most importance facet of Christianity. If all we had was the scribbles of a four-year-old to get us into heaven, we would be doomed.

But we are not just any four-year-old. When you become saved, you become the child of a King.

And when you run to that Father, that kind and gracious King, with your scribbles, screaming, "DADDY DADDY I THOUGHT YOU WOULD LIKE THIS", he smiles, and he is proud. He loves the gifts you can bring, even if they are nothing by the world's standards.

Even if they can never be enough to save your soul.

This is the deepest heart of truth--we have been saved, not by an aloof and distant ruler, but by a King who calls himself our Father. He is the father we all so earnestly need. No matter how great our earthly fathers might be, they can never compare. And if your earthly father has failed you...well, I promise God is a better one in every way. He is the best father. He is the reality that all earthly fathers are mere images of.

And God LOVES his children.

He calls us to love him too.

So don't fear him, O his child. Run to him. He loves you.

We are in real relationship with Him, and he will hold us. 

So don't be afraid. Take that step of faith. Raise your hands and lose yourself in his goodness. Worship Him in spirit and truth. Run to Him when you're afraid. Love Him. He is good.

We don't have to be afraid.

HER BLOG IS HERE GO READ ITTTTTT

What made you decide to revamp your blog?

Honestly, I was feeling really drained and burned out on blogging in general and it was getting harder for me to keep going with it. Finally, it came to me that I needed to switch directions and make my blog more of an author/writer haven, like the blogs that inspired me to even get started in writing and blogging. Thus the new concept was born! Also my best friend, Faith, I don't know if you know her, she inspired me a lot with this. She's amazing. 😏 

Oh, stop xD What are you hoping to do with it now that it is revamped?

I have four main topics I want to cover, things I'm passionate about and can blog about. I want to talk about Indie publishing, because that is where my experience is. I also want to talk about writing because that is what we're all here for. Book reviews and bookish topics are also a big thing, and mental health. I am a big advocate for mental health awareness, especially with my own struggles. So those are the main things I'll be talking about. Of course, I'll have a short story or poem here and there, along with updates on my books.

YOUR BOOKS! Tell me, what is your biggest dream for the future? (Think BIG. No limits of reality here.)

Whoa, that is quite a loaded question for me. I have a lot of dreams. I think one of my biggest dreams would be to have my own library of books, with so many books filling the shelves. I would also love to work somewhere in the publishing industry, helping writers with their dreams. I don't know if I have any BIG dreams at the moment. 

Those dreams are beautiful. Now, on the topic of writing: Why are you so cruel to your characters?

Is it cruel or is it realistic? 😅 I like to go dark. I like to give my characters depth and trauma and have them go through things. I want it to be real. And it's fun imagining the readers getting mad at me for some reason. 😂

Tell us your feelings about dairy? 😉

😑😑😑 depends on the context my dear. 

So since we know cheese is a no-no: Best fast food joint?

I'm from Texas so the BEST fast food place in Texas, in the country, dare I say in the world is Whataburger. It's one of the best places. The food is good. It's just the experience. 

While we're talking about Texas: Best State in the Union?

I would say Texas, because it is, but Texas is a mighty country of its own. So I'm going to have to go with where my best friend lives because anywhere she is will be the best place. <3 

Dude *sobs* You're the BEST. 

Awwww, no I'm not, stop that. 😭😭 only after you boo. <3 

Thank you so much, Faith, for having me here on your blog. This has been fun. We need to do this more often! <3

Go read Brooke's blog right now, and let me know in the comments if I should do more interviews here with her/other blogging frens/etc. because this was a BLAST. 

Well, the end of summer is upon us. It has been an odd summer, but a good one, full of a lot of life changes and a lot of other Stuff that I won't go into here. I'll have another post coming about it later, most likely ;)

But for now...I wrote a LOT this summer and I'm here to share about my two main WIPs!

This post is about If the Sky Falls, the second book in the Players' Trilogy, my current book that I'm planning to pitch sometime (EEEEEP)

LE BLURB

LE STATS

(The following very adorable illustrations are by Lisa Elis!!!) 

LE SNIPPETS

“If there’s one thing I don’t like, Dulcinea, it’s witches.” Daverby was pacing on the other side of a room, holding a book in front of him. Dulci bit back the urge to mention that he was holding it upside down.
“What do witches have to do with that book?” She didn’t usually try to poke at him, but right now she had nothing to lose, and the music was gone, and she wanted to just let go.
“It’s a book about witches!” Daverby shook it as if that would make the words more clear. “It’s very annoying.”
“Dave, that book is about the wild plants native to Isondata.” Dulci turned back to the piano and reached for the keys. Just a single chord, repeating over and over and over and over until her heart could bleed a little less. She had to use it as a bandage, tying herself shut after the bleeding and uncontrollable pain.
Daverby groaned. “Fine. Fine. Who am I fooling?” The next second the piano bench rocked as he thudded down at her side. Dulci flinched. She didn’t stop playing, but her dislike for Daverby flared into the music and she let a dissonant chord or two make it into the song.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, keeping her voice gentle as much as possible.

Today I have a cover reveal for all of y'all! ^_^ I love this book a LOT and I can't wait for you to see what its face looks like, so without further ado: BEGIN SCROLLING.
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YOU ARE GETTING THERE.
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JUST KIDDING.
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THAT'S IT ALMOST THERE...
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VOILA!

author links:

No one has asked me about my writing process, but that's okay because I'm about to tell you about it anyway.

Not much of an introduction on this: Let's just jump right into it and deal with my initial process, from seed to a finished first draft.

STEP ONE: I HAVE A BRILLIANT IDEA.

STEP THREE: I REALIZE THE MAIN PLOT IS BORING AND START ADDING SUBPLOTS.

STEP FOUR: I START WRITING.

STEP FIVE: I SCREAM. A LOT.

STEP SIX: I TYPE THE END.

"He's not a tame lion."

Tangled. I imagine many people see it as just another Disney movie, similar to any other "princess movie" or another animated movie to give kids. I remember I watched it in bits and pieces on Youtube when I was probably 13 or 14. I didn't get it at the time.

But now I am older and I understand the point of Tangled and now it is time for you all to understand it too.

Without further ado: Some flailing on the subject of the best movie made by modern Disney.

Several reasons I love Tangled:

1. The characters.

2. THE ROMANCE

3. THE PLOT

4. THE ANIMATION

Hey, everybody!! Today I've got something a little different for you: a short story by moi featuring the characters from Holding Up the Sky! This story was actually a request by Savannah Grace, so y'all have her to thank for the concept if you enjoy the story xD Without further ado: Here you go!

As the scent of popcorn drifted out of the kitchen, a debate raged in the living room: which movie would be a worthy use of everyone’s time?
Or, at least, Talia and Daverby had taken that position. Everyone else was merely trying to figure out what they wanted to watch. Lissa scrolled reviews on her phone, searching for the most kid-friendly Disney movies that would give Malice a safe viewing experience. Emery swiped through the “popular viewings” list and yelled out anything with promise; everyone else was staying out of the way as much as possible.
Oscar emerged from the kitchen a few minutes later, his cheeks flushed with triumph. Bernardo followed him. Both of their arms were full of bowls of popcorn.
“Who wants some of this?” Bernardo raised an eyebrow with a smirk that made a blush spring to Talia’s cheeks.
Lissa sat down on the floor, cross-legged, and took the bowl of popcorn Oscar offered her. Tarek, on the other side of the living room, was on the floor too, and Lissa allowed herself a long glance at him. A sigh escaped her before she could stop it. If only he were willing to come and sit next to her. He never would—she knew that—but she couldn’t help hoping. It was just a movie, and he’d been willing to let them drag him away from his piano for an evening to watch it. That was certainly among the first times that had happened. She munched popcorn and leaned herself back against the couch as Daverby’s debate with anyone who would argue with him continued.
On the couch, out of the way of everyone else, Dulci pulled her knees up to her chest and tried to take a deep breath. There were so many people here—everyone was all together, which only happened every now and again. Sometimes she enjoyed being with the whole gang, but it was so easy to be overwhelmed. She reached into her pocket for her phone before remembering she’d left her earbuds at home. It would make matters no better to be playing on her piano app without earbuds to ensure that she was the only one who could hear it, so she sat on her hands to keep from fidgeting. She’d turned down popcorn when Bernardo had offered it, but now that everyone else had some and she saw the extra bowls left over, she was regretting that decision strongly.
As Emery finally clicked the title of The Little Mermaid, apparently tired of no one being able to make up their minds, the couch dipped behind Dulci. She tipped her head upward in time to catch a glimpse of a boy swinging himself onto the back of the couch, a boy with golden hair and a single silver streak running through it.
Drex grinned at her, and her stomach dipped in a giddy glissando. “Hey, baby,” he said. “Ready for this?”
She nodded. “I’ve seen all these movies.” Watching them with friends would be different, though. She’d only ever watched them by herself—Santara wasn’t much for movies.
“I haven’t seen this one.” Drex adjusted himself on the couch so that he was sitting on the back of it directly behind her, with one of his legs on either side of her, so she was leaning up against him. “Is it good?”
“Is it scary?” yelled Malice, forgotten on the big easy chair that had far too much cushion for him.
“No,” Talia said, as Emery said, “Maybe a little.”
Once Emery would have glared at Talia for that, but now she just laughed and punched her in the shoulder. Talia shrugged with a grin as she turned away from the TV and the debate it inspired. Bernardo’s face lit up for a second as she turned toward him, but Talia forced herself to ignore him and go to Malice instead. She scooted herself into the big easy chair next to the little boy, pulling him onto her lap, and balanced his bowl of popcorn on her other leg. Ignoring Bernardo’s clear disappointment, she focused all her attention on the previews.
Daverby growled at the remote. Pressed a button, then another, and the TV did nothing. “Stupid thing,” he muttered. “Em? Dearest, give me a hand?”
“You’re using the TV remote. You need the DVD remote.” Emery was no-nonsense as always as she grabbed the other remote from out of nowhere—Daverby would always admire her ability to find everything, even though it frustrated him no end that he could never find anything.
“Too many options, luv. Why do we have to watch this anyway, hmm?” He put up no resistance as Em grabbed his arm and jerked him toward the couch. Drex and Dulci, those blasted lovebirds, were curled up together on the corner of the large piece of furniture, which curved in an L-shape, and Oscar had camped out on the edge closest to the TV. Emery claimed the other end of the couch and yanked him down next to her. Daverby rolled his eyes, cast a glance around, and when he was sure everyone else’s attention was focused solely on the movie—Lissa on the floor where the L shape of the couch hit its curve, Tarek on the floor on the other end of the room, and Bernardo leaning awkwardly against a wall like he wasn’t sure where to go—he wrapped one arm around Emery’s shoulders.
The movie started. Lissa and Dulci hummed along with the musical numbers—Dulci knew all the songs by heart, and Lissa picked them up easily by ear. Drex felt a smile steal across his face, and even as the tone of the movie grew darker, he couldn’t drive it away, and that was entirely because of Dulci leaning against his legs. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head. She didn’t move, entirely engrossed in The Little Mermaid, so he kissed her again. Still no response. He rolled his eyes. Time to get creative. Slowly, subtly, he slid down the cushion of the couch, moving his legs so that he could slide around Dulci.
She jumped as he slithered into the space behind her and adjusted his legs so that he was entirely wrapped around her. Even with that, she wasn’t turning around or paying him any attention. He rolled his eyes. Desperate times called for desperate measures. He went for her neck.
Lissa shot another glance over at Tarek, sitting by himself on the edge of the room. He looked down at his lap, hardly even paying attention to the movie, although every time Ariel sang he looked up like he heard something familiar, a haunted look on his face. He glanced over at her, and his eyes grew wider. Lissa smiled and patted the spot beside herself. He wouldn’t come, not if she knew him, but at least the invitation stood.
To her surprise, he stood up. It was slow and there was pain in his expression, but… he stood up, and he came to her, sat down next to her, and reached for her hand. Lissa still wasn’t sure what to call their relationship, but the warmth that flooded her body at his touch was enough for the moment. She pulled his hand closer, and he let her squeeze it between her leg and her hand, sandwiching it in the middle.
Daverby scrolled Twitter, unable to keep his mind focused. Emery elbowed him every few minutes and he forced himself to look up and pay attention—hard to do when he really just wanted to check out and enjoy the feeling of his girlfriend next to him and the fury of reading news he didn’t like. There was a redhead girl who definitely needed more clothing. There was a prince who needed more of a spine. A dog showed up randomly. The villain was an octopus. Big deal. Dave looked back at his phone.
“Dave!” hissed Em, elbowing him. “Wake up and pay attention.”
“I’m completely awake,” he said, keeping his voice flat.
Emery folded her arms and returned to watching the movie with her full attention.
Daverby cast a glance about the room. Lissa and Tarek were holding hands now—oh, nice, very nice. He approved wholeheartedly of that relationship. He looked over at Talia holding Malice, and at Oscar and Bernardo positioned on the floor, and then over at the corner of the couch, where Drex and Dulci were sitting—
“Oh, blood,” he growled. “Watch the movie, would you?"
Drex looked up from where his face was buried against Dulci's neck. "No," he said, and brought his head down again.
Daverby groaned and opened twitter again. The humanity was too much.
As the movie came to an end, Tarek squeezed Lissa’s hand softly and smiled. She smiled back, uncertain why the emotion in her chest had been stirred so much by a simple kids’ movie. Something about the story was… familiar.
Talia looked over at Bernardo, who gave her a long glance and then heaved a loud sigh. She ignored him and focused instead on Malice’s eager chatter.
Dulci sighed and snuggled into Drex, closing her eyes. He ran his fingers through her hair and allowed himself to smile for the first time in a while. They’d be here for a while if she fell asleep, but he was okay with that. When he had her to snuggle… he wouldn’t be complaining.
After all… they could spare a moment to breathe.
Every now and then.

Human rights. A virus. Eating in restaurants. Treating people civilly when they dress differently from you.

When did it start being divided strictly down a party line?

We're all being played, being drawn in and confused, and we play along. They are the enemy, hisses the news, whether they're pointing to red or to blue, and we hiss right along with them, sharpening our claws in the direction of the other side. Sides, sides, sides. Our states are colored on the map, colors bleeding into each other, blotting out the minority and showing that your opinion doesn't actually matter--you better hope you're living near lots of like-minded people, or your voice changes nothing. It's a year divided by 4, and so everything gets devoured by politics and more politics.

And it aches.

We're splitting in factions, splintering down the middle. If civil war came right now, which doesn't seem as unlikely as it once did, it wouldn't be a war of two armies--it would be hundreds of tiny sub-groups fighting over city blocks.

If you speak up, you're wrong. If you stay silent, you aren't bringing out justice. If you wear a mask, you're submitting to an unfair government. If you don't wear a mask, you're endangering the entire country.

Stop dividing

If you don't get involved in every single social cause with everything you have, you're not doing your part. If you say nothing, you're left with a sense of unease, because that...that probably is wrong.

Everything is wrong.

It all feels wrong.

Wrong, wrong, wrong...

STOP DIVIDING

We are the body of Christ

a body cannot work entirely without all of the parts

we must come back together

instead of dividing

let's love people, the people in our immediate circle, the people we can see and touch and feel, and start a ripple effect

let's train our children someday to be good people and break the cycle and love all people the same

let's fight against injustice and stop making excuses, while also looking at things with a clear mind and not pure outrage

let's join together

stop dividing

fight

back.

LET'S HAVE A WRITING UPDATE BECAUSE WHY NOT????

Launching this baby off: I've written three books over the last semester. I made a little progress on some scenes for other books and wrote a couple chapters of my dystopia, Watched, but I had to halt progress on that one because I just was not feeling it. So for now: I'm sharing about my current WIPs. Holding Up the Sky (which I just finished the second draft of), Stealing Me Away, my contemporary novella which will likely not see the light of day for a very long time, and If the Sky Falls, the sequel to HUtS.

I've done a lot of posts on HUtS now, so let's just get out of the way that it's with alphas and I'll be hardcore editing it over the summer, possibly to prepare for pitching *squeal* so this post will be heavily focused on If the Sky Falls!

First, a blurb:

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