Character Encounters April 2017

http://knittedbygodsplan.blogspot.com

Hello, everyone! Character Encounters is back! This month, we're meeting our characters under a bridge- which actually is pretty easy, since we have at least two bridges here on campus. And under one of them happened to be a character from my current WIP, Fight Song, . . . well, you'll see which one in a minute.
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I noticed the hammock as I pushed open the second set of SSC doors and emerged into the brilliant sunshine. Now, hammocks are hardly an odd sight on campus. On a day like this, the strange thing would be to not see at least one student happily hammocking. However, two things about this particular hammock caught my attention as I headed towards Tyler for my next class. First of all: the location. For some reason, the owner of the hammock had hung it under the bridge between the HSC and the ENS. This still wasn't unheard-of, even if it was unusual; unless the lake was especially high, that bridge only crossed a concrete slab. Anyone could walk on it and set up a hammock if they wanted to. 

The second unusual thing about the hammock, I didn't realize until  I had almost reached the bridge. At that point, the person occupying the hammock poked her head out, grinned, and called out, "Oh, hello!" Even that wasn't particularly unusual, though- except for the identity of the person. 

"Uhjin!" I immediately scrambled down the grassy bank towards the edge of Cedar Lake. "What are you doing here?"

Uhjin pushed her black curls away from her face. "I'm enjoying myself. You don't need me for another six chapters at least, since Callie and Jonathan are doing all the work right now, and it's a beautiful day; I might as well make the most of it. Join me? There's room for a second hammock down here."

"Sorry, no. I have a class in . . ." I checked my phone. "Half an hour. Also, I don't have a hammock."

"You're an author." Uhjin twisted so she lay on her stomach, which set the hammock rocking so much I thought she'd fall out. "Can't you just poof one into existence?"

"Sorry, reality-warping abilities only apply in storyworlds." I hooked my fingers around my backpack straps. "So why are you under the bridge?" 

"Because I wanted to be, of course. It's something different." Uhjin looked out at the lake. "This is nice. We should get one at Foundry City College."

"Good luck with that." I laughed. "You're in the middle of a city, not a cornfield like here-- which I think is why you went in the first place- and I don't see the college trustees or whoever runs the place putting in an artificial lake."

"You could put in a lake." Uhjin gave me a sweet smile, the same one that convinced Callie to set aside work and practice in favor of campus on more than one occasion and won Uhjin all her many boyfriends to date. "You're the author."

However effective Uhjin's smile might be, I have enough experience with my younger sister to not be swayed. "Nice try, but no."

"Oh well." Uhjin slid back into her hammock so she was basically hidden. "Worth a try."

"No, it really wasn't." I checked my phone again. "I need to get going. Will you be here later?"

"Probably." Uhjin sat back up to wave. "See you around."

I headed back up to the sidewalk. "See you- if not here, then in the story." 

Character Encounters March 2017: Indie e-Con

Hey'a, everyone! First things first: I'm doing Camp NaNoWriMo next month (yes, I'm slightly crazy; I should have most of my big projects done by then, though . . .) and I'm looking for cabin mates. So if anyone here is doing it as well, or thinking of doing it, and you need a cabin, let me know! So far, we only have five members, so there's plenty of room!

Second off, some of you may know that Kendra E. Ardnek has, this past week, hosted a virtual convention called Indie e-Con, where over a dozen indie authors came together to share advice on different aspects of writing and publishing, critique writing, answer questions, play games, and generally have a grand old time. It's been pretty awesome. Hard to keep up with, since I've had an exhausting week preparing for a speech and trying to figure out next semester's schedule and starting research for a paper and all that, but still awesome. And as part of the e-Con, Kendra's revived Character Encounters! This month, we're meeting our characters at- where else?- Indie e-Con, only we're pretending that we've got a big convention center in Dallas so we can actually, y'know, meet them. Anyway, enjoy!

The hubbub of excited voices, cheerful conversation, and dramatic book quotes flows around me as I push my way through the crowd of authors, readers, and costumed fans. I weave my way around a trio of girls dressed- very convincingly- like Petra, Sarah, and Amber and wave to C.B. Cook, who's currently at her booth. Actually getting to meet her in person might've been the best part of this convention so far. Not only is she a fabulous author, but she's a good friend.

But as amazing as the convention is, I'm exhausted from trying to take in everything and still keep up with my classwork- deadlines wait for no man, after all- and overheating, since even March in Texas is far hotter than it is at college. So I soon collapse onto a bench in a less-crowded hallway off the main convention area. I can hear voices from down the hallway, and it sounds like someone's started playing Celtic music over the loudspeaker, but despite these things, it's peaceful. I lean back and shut my eyes. All I need now is a cool breeze and I'd be set . . .

A voice- male, edged with teasing sarcasm- interrupts my solitude. "What's this, Taleweaver? I thought you didn't nap."

"What the-" My eyes shoot open and I stare at the person in front of me. He's tall and wiry, with dark, somewhat shaggy hair and a faint smile that suggests he sees all the absurdity of life and finds it quite amusing. He's also in medieval-ish garb: dark green doublet with a lighter green tunic underneath, a brown cloak, and a belt with a long, narrow sword hanging from it. Quite honestly, he looks like a character from my imagination come to life, and ordinarily I'd complement him on his realistic costume. Only problem: there's no way in the nine worlds that anyone would cosplay as this particular character. After all, he's from my books- one that isn't even out of the first edit, let alone published! 

"I don't nap," I finally say, unable to come up with something more intelligent. "And I wasn't napping. I was thinking. Who are- Are you-"

"Jarek Gilleth, at your service." Jarek raises an eyebrow. "I thought you'd done this before, Taleweaver."  

"Yeah, but not in ages." I sit up straight. "How are you even here? There are no portals leading directly from Aralan to this Earth, or from that version of Earth to this one!"

"Not quite sure about that yet." Jarek's tone only hints at his displeasure with this fact. "A couple of the characters of the girl running this place managed it- Laura, and one of the ones who looks like the author-in-charge. I'm going to corner her later and find out, though." 

Whether "her" refers to Laura, Amber- it has to be Amber; and now thinking back to the trio I saw earlier, I can't help but wonder- or Kendra, I'm not certain. And Jarek doesn't give me time to figure it out, instead grabbing my arm and pulling me to my feet. "But right now, the kitten's going to turn shadow and kill me if I don't find you and bring you back so the two of you can have a chat and then probably wander around being strange together. Come on. There'll be pie involved."

"You could've just asked." I pull my arm free and follow him as he leads the way back into the crowd. "I would've come. Even if you didn't bribe me with pie." Now that I'm looking, I think I spot other people whose costumes seem too realistic to be just costumes- there's Reuben, or possibly Robert, conferring with one of his brothers, and I'm fairly certain that the girl in the green dress over there is Caitlyn from Blood Ties. 

I realize I've slowed in order to try to spot book characters when Jarek calls back to me, "Are you coming, Taleweaver, or do I have to come back and drag you again?"

"I'm coming!" I speed up my steps with a grin. Awesome as Indie e-Con already was, it just got a whole lot better.

Character Encounters: Rizkaland!

Hey'a, everyone! I haven't done a Character Encounter in months . . . but I've finally gotten around to it now. Huzzah! This month's Encounter location? Rizkaland, as part of the Ten Year of Rizkaland party. Enjoy!
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http://knittedbygodsplan.blogspot.com/2015/12/character-encounters-december-2015.html

             

It’s not every day that your basement door takes you to another world.

            

 I awkwardly turn the silver handle, struggling to keep my stack of books and notebooks in one arm and my glass of water in the other from ending up on the floor, and push the door open. I flip the light switch, but the only light comes from the bulb at the top of the stairs- shadows await at the bottom. The light bulbs must’ve burned out again. Didn’t we just replace those? I shake my head and head down the stairs.

             

Oddly, the basement doesn’t come into view as I step below the level of the first floor and the wall on my right gives way to open air- only more darkness greets me. I’d guess that all the lights have somehow burned out at once, were it not for the fact that I’ve been walking for nearly a minute and haven’t found the ground yet. The air is also growing uncomfortably cold, and I can’t help but wonder . . .

            

 Eventually, light diffuses through the shadows- but not the yellow brightness of lightbulbs; it’s the pale, cold glow of sun on a winter morning. My next step brings the sound of snow crunching beneath my slipper- Oh dear- and with that, the staircase disappears and my surroundings come fully into focus.

             

Blue trees. Pink snow. “Toto,” I mutter, to no one in particular, “I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore. Or New York, for that matter.” I shiver as a chilly breeze blows past, and then I notice something lying in the snow: a pair of tall brown boots and a matching leather bag. A scroll lies on top, and I bend to pick it up, nearly spilling my water and dropping a book in the process. With some struggle, I get the note open, and grin when I read it: “I thought you might need these. Enjoy Rizkaland (and keep an eye out for a friend showing up soon)!- Laura”

             

Without hesitation, I first stuff my notebooks and books into the bag, and then slip my feet into the boots- which fit perfectly. I push my slippers into the bag as well, shaking the snow off them first, and look around. Judging by the snow color, I’m probably in Lower Klarand- though where exactly I haven’t the foggiest idea.

            

 “Hello?” An oddly familiar voice comes from behind me and to my left. “Hello?”

            

 I turn and grin at the red-haired girl pushing her way through the trees. “Katelyn!” Will she recognize me? There’s a fifty-fifty chance either way- even if she’s not a bard and not from Udarean, she still comes close to seeing life in story-terms, and she’s not technically in her story anyway . . .

             

Sure enough, she grins back. “Sarah!” She darts forward and hugs me. “What are you doing here? What am I doing here? Where is here anyway? I was looking in the back of my wardrobe for something when it suddenly opened up and dumped me in this place . . . at first I thought I’d finally managed to get into Narnia after all, but everything’s the wrong color.”

            

 “Well, the sky’s still blue, at least.” I sip my water, amazed it hasn’t turned to ice yet. “You’re in Rizkaland. Lower Klarand, to be exact. Why we’re both here . . . must be a Character Encounter.”

            

 Katelyn wrinkles her nose. “Where’s Rizkaland? Another of the Seven Worlds?”

             

I shake my head. “Rizkaland is from the Rizkaland Legends . . . which you haven’t read because I’m pretty sure they came out the summer after you left. I’ll try to get you a copy of Water Princess, Fire Prince once I get home, and maybe Lady Dragon, Tela Du, if it comes out before I get around to getting you the books. You’ll enjoy them.”

             

“Thanks.” Katelyn looks around. “So, where to now?”

            

 “Um . . .” I shrug and point in a random direction. “That way? I really have no idea.”

            

 “Works for me.” Katelyn sets off, apparently unconcerned by the fact that we’re both directionless in a strange world. I decide to hope that it’s her genre-savvyness at work; she knows as well as I do that no matter which way you go in a fantasy world, you’re bound to encounter something or someone interesting.

             

Sure enough, after some time, we hear footsteps up ahead, and a voice calls, “Hello? Who’s there?” A moment later, a redheaded young man emerges from the trees, with two older men behind him. The young man wears a circlet studded with rubies on his brow, leaving me with no doubt to his identity.

             

“Katelyn Stevens, formerly of Earth, now of Aralan,” Katelyn replies, her grin widening at that last bit. “And this is Sarah . . . um, don’t know her last name . . . of Earth.”

            

 “And you’re Andrew, the Fire Prince,” I offer. “Aren’t you?” The fact that I’m talking to one of my favorite characters from the Rizkaland universe while wearing an oversized sweatshirt and fleece pajama pants with owls on them suddenly hits me, and I feel my cheeks go red. I mean, meeting Katelyn’s one thing- she’s worn the same sort of thing on more than one occasion- but meeting Andrew is entirely another. At least Katelyn looks more or less at home, in brown leggings, a long green tunic, and brown leather vest.

             

“I am.” Andrew, diplomatically, gives no sign that he’s surprised by Katelyn’s words- or that he’s noticed my embarrassment. His next words explain the former, just as his character does the latter: “The Doorkeeper stopped by yesterday, and told Clara and I that we’d be having visitors from Earth soon. I didn’t expect you this soon, but . . . there’s always rooms ready at the Kastle. Would you care to come?”

             

“We’d love to.” Excitement rises up over my embarrassment, pushing me forward. “Please, Fire Prince, lead on.” Katelyn and I share another excited look. Her and I, on an adventure-of-sorts in Rizkaland- what could be better?

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Thanks for reading!

 -Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Character Encounters May 2015

Hello, everyone! It took me a little longer than I planned to get this ready, but today I have another Character Encounter! This month's location is at the playground, so I knew immediately who I'd be meeting- after all, I have only a few characters who'd be likely to hang around a playground. Conveniently, they happen to be some of my favorites- though don't tell any of my characters I said that. So, without further ado . . .

If all of May’s beauties could be compressed into one single, glorious day, it would be this one. Birds chased one another across the cloudless blue sky, squirrels scampered through the green-clad tree limbs, and a few butterflies fluttered across the grass in search of flowers. A light breeze stirred the air, just enough to prevent the day from growing too warm.

For the brown-and-white dog at the end of the leash in my hand, however, none of these beauties held enough attraction to keep her from racing from one side of the path to the other with her nose to the ground as fast as I would let her go. I hurried after, wondering if this would be the day my shoulder finally dislocated. Lucy, my youth group leaders’ dog, was always energetic, but she seemed especially so today.

As we rounded the bend near the playground, oddly familiar voices caught my ear. I peered through the wall of trees between me and the speakers, trying to figure out who the voices belonged to. I felt certain I’d never actually heard them before, yet I knew them nearly as well as I knew my parents’ voices. Lucy, thankfully, slowed to investigate the bushes alongside the path, allowing me to take a good look at the speakers. Three little girls, obviously sisters, clambered about on the playground equipment, watched over by two older teens, nearly identical but for the fact that one had grey eyes and hair cropped to chin length, while the other’s eyes were violet and her hair was held back in a braid that fell just past her shoulders. I blinked, recognition dawning. But no, that can’t be . . .

The youngest of the girls, a four-year-old with wavy golden hair tied in two pigtails, spotted me and dropped off the monkey bars. She approached me shyly, her eyes fixed on Lucy. “May I pet the doggy?”

“Go ahead.” I took a firmer grip on Lucy’s leash. “Lucy, stay.”

Lucy obeyed, or maybe she was just too absorbed in smelling the bushes to disobey. The little girl tentatively patted Lucy’s head and then, apparently discovering Lucy wasn’t going to jump on her, started rubbing around Lucy’s ears.

The other two girls- obvious twins- dashed over after their younger sister. They glanced at me, their question obvious in their eyes. I nodded. “Go ahead.”

“Thank you,” one of them said, politely. The other went straight to petting Lucy. The one who’d spoken added, “What’s your doggy’s name?”

“Her name’s Lucy.” I kept one eye on the dog in question, who’d given up on smelling the bushes but seemed to be submitting to the petting happily enough. “She’s not mine, though. I’m walking her for a friend.”

“Oh.” The girl joined her sisters in petting Lucy. “I’m Cara, and that’s my sister Keely, and my other sister Hope.”

“Nice to meet you.” I noticed one of the two older girls- the one with shorter hair, who seemed to be about my own age- walking over to me. I offered her a smile. “Hello.”

“Hello.” She smiled tightly back. “Thank you. I hope they aren’t bothering you.”

“Not at all. Lucy’s enjoying the attention.” I took another good look at the newcomer. Her medieval-looking tunic and pants contrasted strongly with the modern playground set, as did the swords sheathed on her back, their hilts just visible above her shoulders. “I’m Sarah, by the way. And you are?”

“Dea Alyron.” Dea held out a hand. “These three are my sisters.”

“I know.” I shook Dea’s hand, barely restraining myself from shouting or doing some kind of happy dance. Dea Alryon! And that must be Gwen over there!

“I guess you would. You’re the Author, after all.” Dea eyed me a bit suspiciously. “Should I be worried about letting the little ones near you?”

I shook my head emphatically. “No! They’re safe! You all are!” Dea gave me a disbelieving look, and I added, “Relatively speaking. Anyway, I wouldn’t actually hurt them. I may be an Author, but that doesn’t mean I’m some monster.” I change the subject. “How’d you know who I am anyway?” I’m used to my Udarean characters recognizing me, when I let them, but encountering characters outside my novels is new to me.

Dea shrugged. “Outside our Stories, we characters know a lot more than we normally would.” She bit her lip, her gaze wandering back to the three younger girls. “Normally, though, I don’t care much about that. I’m more interested in just spending as much time as I can with my family, especially considering what you did to us at the end of Destinies and Decisions.”

Her tone could’ve been a weapon, it was so pointed. I winced. “Right. Sorry. It will get better, I promise.”

“Is it?” Gwen walked over to join us. “After all, we’re-”

I held up a hand, interrupting just in time. “Spoilers!”

“Right.” Gwen sighed in annoyance. “We are where we are, and at the moment, I don’t see a way out.”

Dea scowled. “Maybe if we’d left our snake of a brother and his girlfriend where we found them . . .”

“Maybe.” Gwen shook her head. “But it’s too late to change that now. Unless . . .” She glanced almost hopefully at me.

She must really be desperate. Recalling the situation she and the others are currently in, I wasn’t surprised. “Sorry. I’m not making that major of a change. Not now that I have a draft I like, at least. Like I said, though, it’ll get better. I pro-” Abruptly, the leash jerked from my hand. I turned and lunged after it. “Lucy!”

Lucy, apparently tired of petting, took off up the hill, straight for the road. I ran after her. “Lucy! Come! Lucy! Bad dog! Come!” Dragon’s teeth! Why didn’t I bring the remote for the electric collar? 

Dea passed me by, racing after Lucy as well. I heard the younger girls behind me. Lucy, however, seemed likely to outrun us all.

Then a wall of ice appeared in front of her. Lucy smacked into it and stops short, looking dazed and almost confused. Dea scooped her up, holding her tightly to prevent escape.

I slowed to a walk, breathing hard. “Thank you.” I turned back to see Gwen strolling up the hill at an easy pace. “And thank you as well.” I knew she must’ve made the ice wall; after all, she was the only ice Rider in the group. “If she’d gotten away . . .” I shook my head, not wanting to think about it. My leaders would forgive me; Lucy’s run away from them at least a dozen times. However, I still would’ve had to find her somehow. “I’d better get her home before she escapes again.”

Dea handed me the leash and waited for me to loop it securely around my wrist before setting Lucy down. “Probably a good idea.”

Lucy tugged, wanting to run free again. I clutched the leash with both hands. “Well, it was nice seeing you. Have a good day.”

“We will,” Gwen replied.

“Particularly since we’re here and not in the Story,” Dea added. She paused a moment. “But, if it’s really going to get better . . . could you hurry and write that part?”

“I’ll do my best.” Lucy’s tugging forced me to either start walking or be pulled over. I called over my shoulder to the siblings, “Bye for now! See you in the next novel!”

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For the record, Lucy is very much a real dog who I walked on Fridays during the school year. And yes, she has run away from both me and my youth group leaders before quite a few times. Thankfully, she's always been found and caught (though never as quickly as in this encounter, I don't think!). Anyway, I hope you enjoyed my Character Encounter! Feel free to write your own and join the link-up!

Thanks for reading!

-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade) 

Camp and Character Encounters

Hey’a, everyone! So, I didn’t mean to totally disappear this month . . . but with Camp NaNoWriMo (first prep, then actual writing) and other things that needed doing (like school and driver's ed), that’s kind of what happened. I do hope that I'll start back up with TTT and Random Fridays in May . . . but we'll see. Until then, posts will be sporadic.

Anyway, onto the point of this post! I recently started following Knitted by God's Plan and discovered Kendra's Character Encounters link-up/writing challenge. It sounded like fun; essentially, you write a short piece about how you meet up with one of your characters in a certain location. Better yet was this month's location: my character's own world. This works out very nicely for me, since I've managed to do that in-novel multiple times, canonically even. Well, a character based strongly on me has, but as the main differences between the character and I are that the character spends more time writing and less time staring at the computer and doesn't freak out quite as much about talking to people (mainly because she knows almost all the conversations are happening on her terms anyway), it comes out to about the same thing. And yes, I do have an excuse for putting in a self-insert character! What is it? Well, the best way to answer that question will be to tell you a little about my Camp novel, starting with the synopsis.

Tuira is a land without an Author. It has been for two hundred years, though the bards and bardesses insist that the land’s stories will be written once more. Now, however, the waiting has come to an end. A new Author has been appointed- but she’s not like anything the people of Tuira ever expected.
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No one was more surprised than Rinna when the new Author appeared to her, of all people- especially not since Rinna has been denied entrance to the Order of the Pen multiple times. However, that didn’t even begin to cover Rinna’s shock when that same Author informs Rinna of a threat to Tuira and to her position as Author. Before long, Rinna finds herself on an adventure that will not only decide Tuira’s fate, but challenge everything she ever believed.

It was inspired by the argument I had with a certain bardess in my Berstru Tales and another thought: what if characters in a story knew that their world was controlled by an author, and what if those characters could actually interact with their author? At first I thought it would only be certain characters . . . but then it became more interesting to have everyone in that storyworld know . . . and then it kind of turned into its own religion (which was rather interesting to make- it’s something I’ve never tried before now). Anyway, it’s been pretty fun to write.

Of course, since this novel is pretty much one big character encounter, I have a lot of options on what I could do for this post. I decided to do a certain conversation which I'm particularly (perhaps unreasonably) fond of. Keep in mind: it is still the first draft and therefore rather rough.

"Oh." Rinna adjusted her bag's strap again, trying to find the most comfortable position for it. "But . . . why walk? Why not just appear there? Why bring me along?"

"Official reason: this seemed more fun and I wanted to test my theory. Unofficially . . ." Sarah looked slightly sheepish. "I'm not sure what determines which Fourth Walls shatter when I appear and I don't want to take any risks. I mean . . . there's a lot of Fourth Walls in the High Temple."

"Oh. True." Rinna winced, imagining the crash if they all shattered at once. "Couldn't you just appear outside the Temple?"

"I could." Sarah shrugged. "But like I said, I'd rather do it this way." She glanced at Rinna. "You don't mind coming, do you?"

Rinna hesitated before shaking her head. "No. You want me to do this, so I'll do it."

"That's very kind of you," Sarah said, a hint of wryness in her voice. "Also, from a completely logical standpoint, somewhat foolish, since Authors tend to land their characters in a sea of boiling water."

"But not doing what you want would be worse, wouldn't it?" Rinna recalled what she'd heard the Bards say on occasion. "You'd force me to do it anyway, or manipulate me so I had no choice."

"Force you?" Sarah shook her head. "Never. I mean, I could. But outright forcing a character to do anything usually doesn't work very well. They resist and make the scene nasty and clunky and it's easier just to think of a different option . . . or, yes, manipulate them into taking the path I want them to and thinking it's their idea."

Rinna eyed Sarah suspiciously. "Is that what you did today? Manipulated me so I thought coming with you was my idea when it really wasn't?"

Sarah's gaze remained fixed on a point in the distance. "You were entirely free to say no at any time you liked. You can still say no now and I'll send you home. You can tell your parents that you found out I was crazy or not a real Writer or whatever you like. I'll go to the capital by myself."

Rinna shook her head. "But saying no would be out of character for me. You're my Author; if you ask something of me, I do it. And you told my family you're a Writer offering an opportunity for me to get experience and a better chance of joining the Order of the Pen- again, saying no would be out of character and you, my parents, and I all know it."

"Ah, true." Sarah assumed what was supposed to be a wise, learned, Jedi-esque expression but which really just looked silly. "However, you also fear protagonist-dom, and you recognize that this quest is a good sign that you're going to become one. Thus, you do have a certain amount of motivation to say no. It was just a matter of whether your rather misplaced devotion to me and not-misplaced desire to be a Writer would outweigh your fear."


"Which you counted on them doing." Rinna glanced to the side with a frown. Was it just her imagination, or did the rolling hills and groves of olive and cedar trees seem to be passing so fast they blurred?

"Well, of course. What kind of Author would I be if I couldn't predict what my characters will do in a given situation?" Sarah's walking stick swung and tapped faster, creating a rhythm just slightly out of sync with their footsteps. "But that doesn't mean I manipulated you. You still could've said no."

"But it wasn't very likely." Yes, the trees were definitely blurring, and when Rinna looked down, the ground whizzed by unnaturally fast as well. Rinna's stomach turned, and she looked up again, focusing on the horizon to fight the sensation of nausea.

"If you offered your brother your dessert in return for his doing the dishes for you, is he likely to say no? No. He's not. Is that manipulation?"

"Well . . . no." Rinna couldn't help but feel that there was something wrong with that comparison but she couldn't figure out how to put that wrongness in words. "So why did you want me to come?"

"As I said, I'd like your company and your help." Sarah shrugged. "The latter in particular- I need a native who knows who I am to warn me when I'm acting too odd." She smiled an odd, sly smile, almost a smirk. "Besides, I have a feeling about you. My stories seem to go better when you're involved."

Oh no. Rinna tried to keep the dread out of her voice. "You've decided you want me for a protagonist, haven't you?"

Sarah didn't answer- at least, not how Rinna expected her to. "You're not going to die, Rinna."

"That's not answering the question!"

"It is, just not the question you asked. I answered the question you should've asked- the one you're really asking- and the answer is now." Sarah's stick tapped faster, and the blur of the landscape increased. "No, you're not going to die- not by my pen, anyway. No, I'm not going to elevate you to some high rank you don't want or put you through a war or something like that. I'm not Sanderson or Martin or anyone like that. I said I'd do what I can to keep you safe and help you achieve what you want, and I meant it. That doesn't mean you'll never face trouble, or that the path I choose to get you where you want to be is the same as the path you'd choose. It just means I'm not just doing those things for my own amusement." She turned to look at Rinna, her expression for once completely serious. "You said you wanted to trust me before. So do it now. Trust me that I'll keep my word, and trust the Great Author who guides me. Can you do that?"
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I think that gives you a pretty good look at how my storyworld operates, as well as how the relationship between Rinna and me works! (Though, neither one is usually quite so meta as this conversation was . . .) Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading that, and that you'll join in the Character Encounters link-up as well!

Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)