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!

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

MORGAN BUSSSEEEEEEEE *screams*

my sweet friends

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

Some other things on Saturday:

SUNDAY

Years ago, the Six Warriors saved New York from the Forces of Darkness. They were dragon riders, heroes, wielders of a deep and unknown magic. Now they work 9-5 jobs and have kids, and it’s time for someone else to face the Darkness in its resurgence. 

The Mage announces that there is only one way to find the next Chosen One: a light from the heavens will shine down at the next assembly, and the person it strikes will be the next hero. Everyone expects it to be Cassie, the daughter of two of the Six. No one expects the real Chosen One: Keo, the most ruthless mafia lord in NYC. 

 When Cassie is sixteen, Keo contacts her with a deal: she will perform his Chosen One duties, while he defends New York. An easy fix for everyone. But the Forces of Darkness are stronger than anyone could imagine, and it’s possible that Cass isn’t strong enough to save the world...

I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH OKAY. So, here: some snippets, aesthetics, character art, and songs!

Cassandra Mae Tennant (aka Cass), the Protagonist

I'm a movie buff. I haven't seen a tooooonnnnn of movies, at least not compared to most people who have said they're movie buffs, but those I have seen, I am fiercely loyal about. Today, I'll be bringing you a list, not of my personal top movies, but of the seven that I will always recommend with 0 qualms. (Okay, some of them aren't appropriate for VERY small children, but I'm keeping it light and easy today so if you're reading this post you should be able to handle everything on the list xD)

Without further ado: THE LIST.

"God has laid upon my heart two great objects: the abolition of the slave trade and the reformation of society." ~William Wilberforce

Let's just get this one out of the way right up front. You're not surprised by this at all, I'm sure--if you've been following me for any length of time, you know that this is my favorite movie of all time. Amazing Grace is the story of William Wilberforce and his fight to end slavery in England back in the early 1800s, and it's so powerful. With God's help and some serious conviction, he was able to bring that evil to an end--WITHOUT a war, like in the US. Also he and Barbara Spooner are absolutely my OTP, the acting is spot-on, the costumes are amazing, Thomas Clarkson is hilariously tragic, and Fox is just the best. If you haven't seen this one yet, what are you waiting for? *taps fingers and stares at you impatiently* GO SEE IT!!!!!!!

"Okay, I think I got it, but just in case...tell me the whole thing again, I wasn't listening." ~Emmett

This one, y'all. It's not just for kids. It's hilariously funny and I notice new things every time I watch it. I'll never get over my love for this movie--I laugh, I cry, and I still remember watching it in the theater and being enthralled even though I'd seen it before that free-movie time. The animation is beautiful. The quotes are fantastic. You can watch it with your younger siblings. The messages are great. I have literally nothing bad to say about this one.

"Have courage, and be kind." ~Ella's mother

I grew up on the old animated Disney Cinderella, and I know a million people have a million different opinions on the new one. But I love it. The messages, the sweet heroine, and KIIIIIITTTTTT. (I have never in my life seen a Disney prince who I've actually liked or thought was handsome. BUT KIT. That boy is SMOKIN'.) In a day and age where "strong female lead" or "damsel in distress" are seen as the only options for girls in fiction, Ella is so refreshing, because it's her kindness and sweetness that makes her strong. *slams fist on the table* GIVE ME MORE GIRLS LIKE THIS!

"And you! You hired a monkey to paint your apartment. How do you sleep at night?" ~Ted
Fun fact: when I was three, this was the first movie I went to see in the theater, and it scared me so badly we actually had to walk out. I was wimpy about movies even back then xD But I've gotten better, don't worry. MUCH better. I now watch this movie ad nauseam and quote it at least once a day. WILL FERRELL and Dick Van Dyke, people. And the most adorable version of Curious George that has ever graced the silver screen. This movie is a blessing.

The Lord of the Rings

The Princess Bride

Pilgrim's Progress: Journey to Heaven (2008)

That's my list! What would you guys say are your top recommendable movies? Do you agree with my assessments and have you seen this version of Pilgrim's Progress? Chat with me in the comments!!!! 

We decided to team up today to do the Rip it or Ship it Challenge, but with a twist! The only characters we're ripping/shipping are those from our OWN novels. I put in ten of mine (five boys, five girls) and she put in ten of hers, and we've paired up my boys and her girls, and her boys and my girls, at random to see whether or not we like the ships xD 

Each of us is doing a post, but we did completely separate random couples and have no idea what we each got, so this will be a fun post for us, too xD And these were all selected 100% at random, so...HERE WE GO. This should be fun. xD (And you can find her post over at her blog, HERE.)

Esma is the protagonist of my Pentegreens Series and Cedric is the love interest (and fan favorite, for good reason ;)) of Nicki's Winter Cursed series. 

THIS ONE KILLED ME TO DEATH BECAUSE NO NO NO NO NO AGHHHHHHH NO 

Kariana Winslet is Esma's best friend in the Pentegreens Series; Easton is the sweetest cinnamon roll of all time from the My Time in Amar series. And KARA WOULD KILL HIM. She would have absolutely no patience for him being sweet and trying to negotiate with pirates and not taking care of himself, and he would be scared to death of her ridiculous methods, as well as angry at her for the number of secrets she has. When I got this pairing I screamed so loud it scared my dad and I just want to say NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. No, no, no, no, NO.

(First of all that is NOT Derek even though the pic is the same whoops)

Eira--well, we'll just say Eira is a character from the Pentegreen Series. This might've been more fun with Anna Woods instead of Eira, but also I wouldn't want to sic Anna on any of Nicki's poor characters xD And then Dante is the mysterious huntsman from A Certain Sort of Madness. (alsohe'safanfavoriteandeveryoneloveshimforgoodreason)

This one is AGONIZING. Eira is super analytical and very duty-driven and rule following, so she'd need someone who was perfectly attuned to her sense of justice, and I don't know if Dante QUITE fits that bill. She'd also dislike his tendency to keep secrets, and he wouldn't like that she can mind control him, seeing as he's had some, erm, bad experiences with that. *innocent expression* So...yeah, we're going to say no.

Mel is the protagonist of my Watched Trilogy; Ravven is the male lead of Nicki's Of Gold and Iron. 

And can I just say NO???? 

Mel's super cautious, so she'd mistrust a fae guy from the beginning. She'd never, ever, ever follow him or trust him or let him be her guide, and she'd probably scream if he got within three feet of her and pull out the pepper spray. She'd be TERRIFIED of him xD And he'd probably think she was more of a pest than he does Jaye. Honestly, Ravven might not mind her so much (beyond the pepper spray), but Mel would never go for this, so it's going to have to be a no. xD

Keo is the male lead of Not the Chosen One, the WIP I mentioned above xD and Jaye is the heroine of Nicki's Of Gold and Iron. 

Looking past the fact that Keo is waaaaay too old for Jaye (a good nine years older), this might actually work out okay. Jaye seems to have a thing for older guys anyway (*coooouuuuuuugh*) and while Keo is a ganglord, he's got a secret soft spot and would take good care of her once he got to know her. He's fiercely loyal and so is Jaye, so both of them would get along fine. In the end, after some hard thought xD, I'm giving this a YES.

(Yikes why do both these images make them look so hardcore they're really not)

Clarence Redow is the principle love interest from the Pentegreen Series, and Chelsea is one of several protagonists in Nicki's My Time in Amar. And all I can say to this pairing is YES YES YES <3

I LOVE THIS IDEA SO MUCH OKAY. Both Clarence and Chelsea are soft, sympathetic, compassionate people. They're both deeply suspicious and ridiculously protective of those they love, and while they're both capable of sarcasm, they don't tend to resort to it quiiiiite as often as the people around them. I think both of them are just too soft for the world and they need someone else who's soft to protect them. So YES YES YES YES YES to this all the way. YES.

Lucas Burns is the male lead of my Watched Trilogy, and Aleria is from Nicki's Apprentice of Death series. 

Honestly, I don't know how I feel about the two of them? I think it could work. Aleria is an assassin type who's on the quieter side, but she's frequently surrounded by boisterous people, so she could handle Lucas. And Lucas...he's a heartthrob who will love you to death, so as long as she isn't adverse to his affection and he doesn't mind her attempts to kill people from time to time, this could kind of work. 

You all know Rishatta or there's something wrong ;) xD And Alicia is the protagonist of Nicki's Certain Sort of Madness. I kind of don't even want to consider her with anyone besides the person she actually ends up with, because her true ship is so perfect...but we'll just do this xD

Honestly? I don't think this would work. Alicia is so flighty and light-hearted that I think she would stress Rishatta to death most of the time, and he's so emotionally needy and unwilling to back off that Alicia would probably lose patience with him. He wouldn't be able to keep up with her pace, that's for sure. xD They just wouldn't be able to put up with each other, I think. Seems like there would be an awkward combination of clone-personality and clash-personality that would get in the way of any real relationship. xD

Captain Derek Tern is my most favorite one of my favorite characters in the Pentegreen series, and Elisabeth is the lead character of Winter Cursed. 

Honestly, I absolutely love the idea of this ship. Part of that is that Derek is compatible with pretty much anyone and everyone, because he's such a laid-back, easy-going, kind, loyal person. And Elisabeth, while she's high-strung and cold, would probably like him, even if it was initially against her better judgment. They'd make an awesome power couple. Derek would act all chill around Elisabeth's enemies but then demolish them, and Elisabeth would act cold to him at first but then get used to him and they'd be amazing together. I love this wholeheartedly. xD

And that's it! Nicki's doing this same thing over on her blog, so make sure you check out her post and let her know what you think of the couples she got xD I loved putting this post together and hope you enjoyed it too! 

What do you think of my opinions as regards these ships? Do you think any of my characters and Nicki's characters would actually work out as ships? (We both think Rish and Elisabeth would be a superb couple, not gonna lie.) Chat with me about this in the comments, and make sure you check out Nicki's post! 

There were only three people in the whole course of my life who ever made me feel warm. The first was my mother. The third came later.

With the wrong girl.

Rishatta Woods chuckled out loud, which only made the storm clouds above his sister’s brow grow darker. “Oh, Anns, Father would never really kill me. He might get close. But I don’t think he himself is actually capable of doing a deed like that.”

“Really?” Anna shook her head. “He’s killed traitors for less.”

“So I’m a traitor now?”

She stared out the window again without response. Rishatta sighed and put the book down, which was letting her win. He didn’t really care; few could best Anna Woods at her own game. She was fifteen. She was power. She was absolutely ruthless. She took that from their father.

Shai folded his arms. “And she’s my lights-cursed cousin. Does that mean nothing to you?”

“You’re vaguely related? I don’t know.”

“Lights above, Rish, you’re the most lights-cursed idiotic idiot the lights have ever beheld!”

“Watch your language.”

“You’re one to talk.”

~

All he knew was no no no no no…

He slammed into the water and the water slammed into him.

Cold invaded his body. Icy water pressed into his skin, forcing him under, holding him there. He struggled up again and his head broke the surface, air filling his screaming lungs and flooding him with relief. He hadn’t even been under for more than a few seconds, but they had been seconds rife with the fear of death.

He couldn’t die of drowning, could he?

Rishatta Woods

Anna Woods

Alanna

 

Shai

Burashna Woods

~

(WHICH IS 100% A REFERENCE TO MY SMOL LOVE DEREK AND BOOK 3 IS CENTERING ON HIM AND HE'S MY FAVORITE AND AGGHHHHHHH I ADORE HIM SO MUCH) 

So...make of that what you will ;) Just wanted to get that out there.

What do you think of my little novella? Would anyone else like to join the lineup of people suing me for custody of Rishatta? (Because clearly I don't deserve him.) Are you doing the Go Teen Writers 100-for-100? Let me know in the comments!