Realm Makers Recap

Realm Makers was amazing! Seriously, it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I mean, where else do you have a room full of people in nerdy costumes praying together? This is what they say on the Realm Makers website:

"Are you a creative person who loves science fiction and fantasy, but also makes your spiritual growth a high priority? Have you found that you’re a little too weird for the usual church crowd, but don’t exactly fit in with the sci-fi convention set either? Well, now there’s a place for you to learn, share your talents, and commune with people a lot like yourself."

And now that I've gone, I can say that it's completely accurate. I completely felt like I belonged. We're all writers. We're all Christians. We're all there to learn and share ideas and build each other up and inspire each other and make new friends and just be a community—a family—unlike any other. The only negative thing I can say about Realm Makers is that the conference ends and we all have to go back home. (And the book store is a negative to your bank account. But that's a good problem.) So if you're a Christian speculative fiction author, I highly recommend you go to Realm Makers. It's more than worth it.

So for my experience.

I roomed with Jaye L. Knight and Tricia Mingerink and we had such a great time! We spent hours talking about everything from Marvel movies to childhood imaginative games to our current WIPs and future writing projects to spiritual growth. Before the conference, we went with my family to the Arch, which was a lot of fun. And included conversations about how much my sister hates Keevan from Tricia's Blades of Acktar series. XD

Brent Weeks was the keynote speaker, and both his opening and closing keynotes were fabulous. He was very inspiring, and funny too, while being very real about the ups and downs of his faith and writing journeys. I haven't read any of his books, but I was very impressed by him as a person, and want to read his books now.

I did Julie Hall's continuing sessions on indie publishing, and while there were things that I already knew from my 6 year journey as an indie author, I still learned a ton. I did have to miss parts of it to go to appointments, but I hope to get the conference audio to fill in the gaps...and so I can experience the electives I had to miss because there were too many good ones at the same time. Plus, a fellow Realmie gave me a cool idea for Time Captives bookmarks during the continuing sessions and I can't wait to try it out!

And I met Jill Williamson! She had to fill in for a faculty member who last minute couldn't attend, and it was during my scheduled appointment, but Tricia offered to let me join her in her appointment and it turned out great! Yes, we fangirled. Jill is an amazing person, so sweet and easy to talk to, and the half hour just flew by. It's so hard to choose what my favorite part of Realm Makers was, but meeting Jill was definitely up towards the top. And she was excited I brought Replication to Disney and even drew a Mickey in it!

With Tricia and Jill Williamson

I had two pitch appointments, and I was scared about them, but they proved to me just how unique and special Realm Makers truly is. Before my first one, the lady in charge of appointments invited me to practice on her, and then she prayed with me—and then we talked a bit about Doctor Who because they were holding the pitches in the room called "Davos" and we both kept wanting to read it as "Davros." And before the second, a lady came to me saying she was the "designated pray-er on duty" and she prayed with me as well. The pitches went well, and I'm looking forward to seeing what God does in the future.

The awards banquet was so much fun! Dressing up is awesome, and there was such a wide variety of costumes. Even in our little group, we had Anna from Frozen (me), Ranger Maddie from Ranger's Apprentice (Tricia), and gender-swapped Daryl from The Walking Dead (Jaye). So when Tricia and I got to our room to get ready, Jaye told us she was almost done, she was just cleaning up the zombie blood in the bathroom. It was awesome. XD I loved that they were playing songs from movie soundtracks, I loved all the costumes, and it was just a great experience. Nothing quite like it. And then afterwards I talked to one of Jaye's carpool buddies about the time she met Bradley James (BBC's King Arthur). I'm so jealous.

The princess, the princess Ranger, and the redneck zombie hunter

With Tricia as Maddie

With Jaye as Daryl

With Kendra E. Ardnek as steampunk Clara

With Jill Williamson as the White Witch

With Brie

"Can you see me now?"

The electives were fun, especially Jill Williamson's worldbuilding class. I loved it so much. And there was definitely an information overload. So many things to learn!

The book festival was the last night. I got some of my books signed before the festival, like my Bryan Davis and Terry Brooks books. And I'm pretty sure I was fangirling bigtime over Dragons of Starlight and Echoes From the Edge (now Time Echoes) when I was talking to Bryan Davis. He was pretty awesome and gave me an extra book on top of the one I bought. I also met Wayne Thomas Batson and it was pretty cool. Then I bought a copy of The Story Peddler by Lindsay A. Franklin, which had won several awards, and got it signed too.

With Terry Brooks

With Bryan Davis

With Wayne Thomas Batson

My new signed books

Most nights, Jaye, Tricia, and I were pretty good about going to bed early, but not that last night. We just didn't want it to end. So we sat outside by the fountain for a while and talked, and then went to our room and got ready for bed and then talked some more, and then turned off the light and kept talking a little while longer. I miss them both already, and sincerely hope we can work out another visit in the near future.

And we had to go home. That's the worst part of it. It's over too quickly. But I am beyond glad that I went. It was thoroughly amazing, and I really hope I get another chance to go to Realm Makers someday!

One Step At A Time

This is, in a way, sort of a continuation of last week.

I've always been the sort of person that wants to know everything. Not in a know-it-all kind of way. In an I-want-to-know-what's-going-to-happen way. I want to know all the what, when, how, and why of what's going to happen in my life. But life doesn't work that way. God doesn't work that way.

Oh, He knows all the what, when, how, and why of everything. But He hasn't given that knowledge to me. He hasn't given that knowledge to any of us.

So many times, my plans have gotten derailed. Like the time I wrote this poem. So many times I've wanted things to go a particular way, and they never do. So many times I've been in tears crying to God, wanting to know why things aren't going the way I thought they were going to go, the way I thought they were supposed to go.

I don't have the master plan. All I have is what God wants me to do right now. Not why He wants me to do it. Not where it's going to lead. Not where He's going to have me five, ten, twenty years down the road.

I don't know. But He does. And He's going to work everything out according to His plan. He's doing things for my future right now that I know nothing about. He's in control.

And all I have to do is take things one step at a time, following Him, trusting Him that He knows what He's doing, because He does. It may not make any sense to me right now, but that's okay. Because it makes sense to God. He's a good God. He's not going to give me a stone when I ask for bread, a snake when I ask for a fish, a scorpion when I ask for an egg. He's guiding me along His perfect plan that is to His glory one step at a time. And I just have to follow and trust in Him.

"From where I'm standing

Lord it's so hard for me to see
Where this is going
And where You're leading me
I wish I knew how
All my fears and all my questions
Are gonna play out
In a world I can't control...

 

"From where You're standing
Lord, You see a grand design
That You imagined
When You breathed me into life
And all the chaos
Comes together in Your hands
Like a masterpiece
Of Your picture perfect plan"
—"Already There" by Casting Crowns

 

Acktorek and Trust

I try never to write books with a particular theme in mind. Generally, what I've found is that when books/movies are written with a particular theme or message in mind, it becomes preachy, and the story and characters suffer. It's my opinion that when you focus on the story, the theme becomes a natural and integral part of the story, and is way more powerful than a story written to prove a point. So I try to organically write a story, dedicate my writing to God, and leave the theme up to Him. And generally, when I notice the theme later, I'm floored by what God was doing in my writing without me even noticing it.

I wrote Acktorek to jumpstart and revitalize my imagination. Seriously. After that really bad bout of writer's block I've mentioned a time or two on here, I needed something low stress, something that was new, something imaginative, something where I didn't have to worry about word count. So I just wrote. And the story formed. Not exactly what I'd envisioned, but it came out better. (Though I have to say, I do sometimes miss the original bits and pieces of books that get left behind when I actually write them.)

Fast forward to the beginning of this year. I was in a place where I was ready to abandon all I've worked for in these last six years of publishing and more of writing. Adulting is hard. Being an entrepreneur is hard. Things in my life aren't going the way I'd envisioned (spoiler alert: they never do). Back in December, when I was dealing with some personal things that weren't panning out the way I'd hoped, I'd felt God impressing on me to trust Him. To

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths." —Proverbs 3:5-6

I'm just going to be honest here: I wasn't. Sure, in my head, I knew that I needed to trust God, but in my heart, I was ready to throw away everything God had brought me through up to this point and go do something entirely different. Yes, there are times when God wants us to completely change what we're doing. I'm not going to deny that. But when you've been following where God leads and using the gifts He's given you, and when the results aren't what you expected, you decide to throw it away and go do something else in your own strength because it looks easier than fighting the battle God put in front of you...well, that's not good. That's not trusting Him.

I couldn't rest in my new plan. I just couldn't. I was miserable, I felt sick about it. But I was so done with what I'd been doing, so done with trusting God when the results weren't anything like what I'd expected. Luckily, I have parents who are both supportive, and who honestly fight harder for my dreams than I do. My mom told me not to talk about my other plan until I read Business Boutique. ...still haven't actually finished it, but anywho.

As I read Business Boutique, I finally started to remember why I write in the first place. Why I teach music the way I do. Why I love it. Can you believe I'd forgotten why I love to write? Even though this was after I'd written draft 1 of Acktorek and quite enjoyed it? I started to pray that God would direct me in the next steps for my author career. I honestly had no plans for my writing this year, other than maybe to try to write another draft of the Espionage sequel. (Apparently, Espionage is my least popular book. Please go give it some love. 😊) Which I suppose isn't all that surprising, considering I was thinking about giving it up. And you know what? I didn't at all feel God impress it upon me to give up writing. Indeed, it was quite the opposite.

I felt Him telling me to go ahead and do the new Time Captives covers now. To take steps to make my books more professional. And then there was Realm Makers. I obviously already wanted to go. I had friends ask repeatedly if I was going this year. I hadn't planned on it. At some point the idea of trying traditional publishing with Acktorek was planted in my head by one of Nadine Brandes's newsletters where she explained why she went with a bigger publisher for Fawkes and Romanov. I felt like I should pitch at Realm Makers. But there was no way I'd have it ready for this summer.

Yet, God kept putting all the pieces into place. Plans came together for me to logistically get to Realm Makers. (I rarely drive on the interstate at home, much less out of town...back roads and in-town driving for the win!) I got both the pitch appointments I wanted, even though I'd convinced myself I wouldn't get either. I had hiccups with Time Captives—which will be available on consignment in the bookstore, so if you're going to be there, check it out!—but I now have a box ready to take to St. Louis. I have my business cards.

Acktorek is where things are really crazy, though, and I have to give glory to God for where it all is right now. I never thought it was possible to write a draft as fast as I wrote the second draft of Acktorek. Seriously. But I did it. I had no idea how to pitch a book, how to write a book proposal, what I'm getting myself into here. (Still don't really.) But I've learned soooooo much. I have no idea what's going to come of these pitch meetings. I have no idea what things I'm going to learn during the conference. I have no idea who I'm going to meet and what connections I'm going to make, or honestly, why God wants me at Realm Makers this summer at all. I don't know. But I'm (finally) trusting that He has a reason for it.

And funny thing, as I've been working on my proposal and pitch, I've thought about the theme of the book. One list of questions commonly asked during verbal pitches was about the theme. It took some brainstorming, but finally I figured out that theme. That message of the book that I didn't put there intentionally. Not the only theme dealt with in the book, but by far the most prominent one. And this is what I wrote: 

-What is the theme of this story?
Trust. Trusting your family, trusting your friends, ultimately trusting God. Trusting that He knows what He’s doing, that even the worst circumstances work together for good, that however excruciating things might be, He will give you strength to bear and overcome them.

Trust. All this time, I've been struggling with trust. With trusting that, even when things don't look at all like what I expected, God is still in control, working all things together for good, for His glory. That He knows what He's doing. And all this time, He's been guiding me through a book that's all about trust. All about seemingly terrible circumstances with no way out, where God has been orchestrating it His way, which is totally different from ours.

When I realized that, I was amazed. God is pretty awesome. He always teaches me things through my own books when I give them over to Him and ask Him to do what He will with them.

I don't know what's going to come out of Realm Makers. I don't know what's next for Acktorek. I don't know what's next for me as a writer. But I do know that God knows. God is in control. And all I have to do is trust Him.

"Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass." —Psalm 37:5

Aladdin Review

Aladdin (2019)

I saw Aladdin! I hadn't actually been planning on seeing it in theaters, but we decided to go for Father's Day and I'm glad we did. It was SO GOOD. So much to love.

First off, I'd better say that I've only seen the animated movie a handful of times. I saw it once at my great grandma's house when I was little, and then, due to the Disney vault and whoever stole it from the library, I didn't really watch it again until the Bluray came out a couple years ago. So there isn't a boatload of nostalgia with the cartoon to compete with like there is on a lot of other Disney movies. That said, I still really like the animated movie, and I wasn't sure how the live action would hold up. I shouldn't have worried at all.

I'll just go ahead and say the one thing I didn't really like about the movie. Jafar. It's not that the actor necessarily did a horrible job, per se, though it could have been better, but he just really didn't look the part. He didn't look cruel and evil, and Jafar's supposed to have that creepy evil look. See?

via GIPHY

As opposed to this:

Plus, like a coworker of mine said her husband pointed out, he wasn't old enough.

via GIPHY

One thing I think we were all worried about was how Will Smith's Genie would compare to Robin Williams's. There's only one Robin Williams. And Robin Williams's Genie was very special. But I was actually very pleasantly surprised with Will Smith's Genie. I don't know why I wasn't expecting him to float in the air, change his appearance to fit some of the comedy, etc. CGI can obviously do that now. Of course, it wasn't as much as in the animated movie, but he still behaved like Genie. But yet slightly different. And he was still blue part of the time. Just not when he was trying to blend in as a human. And he even gets a girl in this one! No, no one's ever going to quite match Robin Williams. But he still did a fabulous job.

via GIPHY

And when they did "Friend Like Me." :D My sister and I were both so excited when the song started.

via GIPHY

I liked both Aladdin and Jasmine. Jasmine doesn't exactly look like I'd expected...not like the cartoon or the girls at Disney World...so it took a bit to get used to, but I ended up really liking her. And her costumes are actually pretty modest! They were well cast, and I just love them. They played their characters well.

via GIPHY

As for the story and how it compares to the cartoon, yes, it's the same story. I don't think there are any real twists, unless you count Genie meeting a girl. But it didn't feel like a shot-for-shot remake either. It the same enough to be the same Aladdin we all love, but different enough to not feel like the filmmakers cheated. (Like with Beauty and the Beast. Didn't like that one so much, though that's partially because I didn't like Emma Watson as Belle.) I felt like it was the same story but different more in the vein of Cinderella, though of course, Aladdin was still a musical, while Cinderella wasn't. And oh my goodness gracious. The scene after "Prince Ali" when Aladdin is presented to Jasmine and the Sultan. Just wow. Like Genie said, 10,000 years, and he's never been more embarrassed. But I loved it so much. Jams. XD

via GIPHY

And then there are the songs. I'm so glad they included the songs. I've been listening to the soundtrack so much. It's mostly the same songs from the original, and I love them. Like I said, I was so excited when "Friend Like Me" started. "A Whole New World" makes me so happy too.

via GIPHY

And then there's the new song, "Speechless."

via GIPHY

It seemed to have somewhat of a different feel from the other songs, but I still loved it. It's very Jasmine. All about how her supposed role is just to stand there in the background and let others rule her kingdom. Just be silent. Not say anything in defense of her people. But she won't do that. "Speechless Part 2" in the climax of the movie is her finally breaking free, standing up to Jafar, refusing to stay speechless. Doing what it takes to save Agrabah. And I love it.

So no, Aladdin wasn't a perfect movie. But I love it so much and I can't wait for it to come out on Bluray so I can watch it again and again. Now excuse me while I listen to the soundtrack for the 500th time this week.

Giveaway Winner and Realm Makers Update

And the giveaway is finished! The complete set of Time Captives new editions goes to Cassandra D. Congratulations! I'll be emailing you for the information I need to get you your prize.

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Several bloggers helped me promote the new covers, so here's the links to their blog posts so you can check them out!

Bible and Books

Faith Blum

Jaye L. Knight 

Knitted By God's Plan

M.H. Elrich

The Music of a Story

Tricia Mingerink

Written Rest

I finished my Anna dress! The appliques were a BEAR to put on, but once I figured out what I was doing, it was just super duper time consuming. But hey, I was able to finish The Books of Bayern on Full Cast Audio, so that's awesome, and I LOVE my costume.

So that's ready. One thing done for Realm Makers! I've also got copies of Time Captives ordered for the consignment sale, so if you're going to be at Realm Makers, you'll be able to buy the brand new editions in person.

I've gone through family edits on Acktorek, which included eating two carrot sticks at once and acting out scenes to make sure they're actually possible. It's been interesting. I've also worked on a logline and on the back cover copy. It's definitely getting close to complete! Aaaaaalmost ready for pitching at Realm Makers. Here's my logline:

When a blind teen gains the uncanny ability to manipulate energy, her skeptical sister must join forces with a rookie secret agent and unravel the mystery before his devious boss ends her life.

So those are the main things I've been working on. I've also got business cards ordered, and I really like the way the design turned out. Realm Makers is almost here!

P.S. Just saw Aladdin and it was pretty awesome. I didn't think Jafar looked evil/scary enough, but other than that, it was great.

The New Covers For Time Captives Are Here!

The new covers are here!!!

I'm super duper excited about these covers! I also want to give a humongous shout out to Jaye L. Knight. She gave me sooooo much advice as I went through the process of creating these covers, and they would not be what they are without her. She's seriously the best.

Something else big with these editions (and yes, I'm being mean and writing things for you to scroll through before you can see the covers) is that I have my own imprint! I bought a block of ISBNs to use for my books, so now I'm ShireWood Press. It's super exciting to me and I love my ShireWood logo and website. We'll even be using ShireWood Press to publish my great great grandpa's poetry in one volume for the first time later this year. Some cool stuff. :)

Now, here's what you've been waiting for:

Buy Now

Buy Now

Buy Now

So what do you think? I personally love the new look, and they're sooooo much better than the old covers. More representative of the story inside.

I'm going to be giving away one set of the brand new paperbacks, so be sure to enter! Giveaway open to U.S. residents only.

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I've also put my remaining copies of the 1st edition on sale while supplies last, so while these aren't as pretty as the new ones, it's still an opportunity to get paperback Time Captives books for half off!

Creighton Hill

The Crossways

Crannig Castle

Learning About Blindness

The topic of blindness has been of interest to me since I was a small child. I credit Little House (Mary Ingalls), a book my mom read to me about Helen Keller (and later her autobiography), and Seeing Fingers (Louis Braille).

When I began Acktorek, I discovered that Carla, one of my key characters, is blind. It isn't a decision I consciously made—these things rarely are—it just simply is. It's not her defining characteristic. I'd define her more by her musicality, imagination, and selflessness. Her blindness is just a characteristic, like Anne Shirley's red hair. Part of what makes Carla Carla.

Once I'd written the first draft, I realized I really needed to learn more about blindness to portray it accurately. (I can't say I do it perfectly, but I do my best.) As a very nearsighted person, I'm not a stranger to visual impairments, but there's a huge difference between looking at a fuzzy world until you put in your contacts and being completely blind since birth.

I first thought of rereading Helen Keller's autobiography, though she was also deaf (and lived a long time ago), but I ended up not doing that. My friend Kendra recommended I read Light a Single Candle by Beverly Butler, the story of a teenage girl losing her sight, based on the author's own experiences. I read it, loved it, and read the sequel as well. I also, through googling different things related to blindness, came across two useful YouTube channels: The Tommy Edison Experience and Molly Burke. Note: I haven't watched all the videos on either channel, so while all the videos I watched were fine, I can't vouch for content.

Watching these videos, I learned how many misconceptions there are about blindness. As a sighted person, it's hard to comprehend life without vision. There are so many things that we interact with visually that it's hard to comprehend how someone can operate without sight. How a blind person can interact with the same things we rely so heavily on visuals to use. But it's actually not that complicated. It's just different.

Like smartphones and other touchscreen devices. They actually have built in features for the visually impaired. Look at your iPhone settings in the "Accessibility" features. The "Voice Over" feature is really cool. It changes the touch screen commands somewhat to accommodate the features and reads out your screen to you. There's also a "Braille" feature, which I'm assuming is for output to a refreshable Braille display, but those are SUPER expensive, so I couldn't try it out. But yes, a blind person can use a smartphone.

Blind people can enjoy movies. Tommy Edison is "the blind film critique." Some movies have descriptive audio but he chooses not to use it, simply to follow the story via the ordinary audio track. And you know, that's not impossible. He talks a lot about how you can hear people's emotions in their voices. Think about it. You really can hear when someone is smiling, or when they're upset.

I checked out some Braille books from the library. One is a picture book (yes, with regular pictures, still trying to understand that one), and the other is a volume of the Bible. I'd intended just to see what a Braille book looked like, but since the picture book has regular printed English as well as Braille text, I've actually been reading the Braille. So now, I can read some Grade 1 Braille. I'm super slow at it, but I know most of the alphabet and I'm starting to recognize punctuation. It's pretty exciting to me. Now, the Bible is a lot harder to read. Largely because it's in Grade 2 Braille. Basically, Grade 1 is just a 1 for 1 conversion. Grade 2 makes use of abbreviations for certain common syllables as well as some vowel omission for space. Grade 3 is essentially shorthand, but an article I found said that Grade 3 isn't standardized, so it isn't used for official publications. Braille books are a lot harder to come by than print books and are more expensive, but I found a website that sells Braille books (including some of my favorites, like Narnia and Ranger's Apprentice) some for as low as $30. Not all that much more than the standard list price for a new hardback book. But of course, the longer books do cost significantly more. And when you live in the days of text to speech and audiobooks for just about everything, you've really got very open access to the literary world, even if you don't have a refreshable Braille display.

The biggest problem with blindness that I've found through my research isn't in the limitations caused by blindness at all. I mean, sure, there are things a blind person can't do, like drive a car, but there are plenty of things I'm incapable of doing even as a sighted person. The bigger problem is in people's attitudes. Molly Burke addresses this in several videos, such as her "questions not to ask a blind person" videos. She'll be out with a friend, and people ask her if the person is her helper. Or they'll be talking to her, discover she's blind, and proceed to direct all further conversation (about her) to whoever she's with. Blind people are still people who live normal lives. Don't assume because someone can't see that they're less of a person. Their lives aren't of less value just because they can't see. They're just different. And different is good. If we were all the same, the world would be an awfully dull place.

There are so many other ways to interact with the world besides sight. My library is using the system's VR system this month, and one of the experiences we have for it is "Notes on Blindness." It uses the journal of a man (I forget his name) on his experiences with blindness as well as sound effects to give you the experience. It was fascinating just how much was identifiable by the sound. It's so easy to tell the difference between high heels and sneakers just from the sound. Yes, if something is silent and not encountering your other senses, it's basically invisible, but you'd be surprised just how much you can learn from your other senses.

Right now, I can hear the clothes rattling around in the dryer, there must be something with a button or a zipper because I can hear the clattering. The washer was spinning, and is now filling with water. The air condition is running and I can feel the gentle wind from the ceiling fan on my face. When I went to work on the laundry, I could feel when I walked from the carpet onto the hardwood floors through my socks. I knew when I stepped on the rug, and when I was on the linoleum of the laundry room floor. There's no particular smell I'm identifying right now, but I can often tell what's been cooking by the smell. I can usually identify which family member is coming down the stairs by the sound of their footsteps. I can make my bed simply by the feel of it.

Close your eyes, walk around your house, see what you can find out about your surroundings without sight. You'll be surprised. Your brain is already taking in all that information, storing, processing it, it just more than likely takes back burner to your visual stimulation. But it's there. Enhancing your world in ways you may not even realize. All of our senses are amazing. And something I love about writing Carla is learning to experience the world in a completely different, but just as fantastic way.