#14 - The audiences for my readings have been...small. At my first one at a con, Jordan Kurella was there to see another reader. He made a point to come up to me afterward and compliment my representation of anxiety, which is a lot of how I've learned stand and read proud. 🙂 // #TellThemNow

#13 - In honor of our family watching of Weird for Thanksgiving, today's story is when I got vip tix to meet Weird Al. It was rather stormtroopers and ho ho ho, but though I stumbled over my one line, I got to say to him, "Thank you for making me laugh my whole life," and his kind response seemed sincere. 🤪 // #TellThemNow

But after like reminding me to get professional help (which was good!) he also said he goes to fantasy, always has. I'd kind of...forgotten I could do that. And so immersing in worldbuilding for Alyssia was a lot of how I got through 2020 when I was too drugged to read or write. (That + 🌞.) I also think sinking my soul into that world is why it feels so deep in the writing. 🙂 // #TellThemNow

#12 - Today, thinking of gratitude, I've got to mention Tad Williams. He's read to us weekly since the pandemic started, and sure, he says it's for him (I get that) but it helps us tadfriends a lot too. He also says hi to everyone. Every week. As for the story piece, when I was in the middle of my mental breakdown I asked him for advice. In retrospect, I sounded (and was) really unstable and I'm sure he was nervous. #TellThemNow

#11 - For Stewart Baker I'd have to mention the time that we thought an email was funny, joked we should write a short story inspired by it, and then ended up with a co-written novel. (Currently submitted for consideration to four presses; watch us do it!) 😀 // #TellThemNow

#10 - I have had many lovely moments with Minerva Cerridwen but I'll never forget that when I told my Gen Con airwall fart story, everyone else hard-averted their eyes, and Minerva responded that now everyone will go to Indiana just to try this and then put it in xyr blog. 🥳 // #TellThemNow

#09 - You think I'm going to get through this without mentioning that Sienna Tristen told me they wanted to shout out "You're hot!" during my Can*Con speech? Ok, fine, this one might also be bragging. 😘 // #TellThemNow

Basically I greet him like he's one of the regulars in the Artist Alley. He gives me, well, somewhere between tired/nervous eye-look but I'm already past him. Walk like ten steps in silence, and then hear Chris say, "Yeah, that happened." 🤔 // #TellThemNow

#08 - I'm walking out back of the convention, tired and aching and rolling my big tub, and as I'm shifting in the traffic, someone shifts toward me, and I come face-to-face with Wallace Shawn. My tired brain says "you know this person" so I grin/nod "Hey." and swerve around. #TellThemNow