Game On Recap, Elyathi cosplay, and Skyrim modding...

Hello Everyone! I just got back from Game On Expo last night. It was a long and exhausting weekend, but well worth it. Oddly enough, I woke up extremely early this morning, refreshed and renewed to get going on my creative projects. I wanted to take a moment to recap my time at Game On. It was my first time ever being at Game On, so I didn't know what to expect. Originally, I got the impression that convention covered all games, which included retro gaming. This was true, but the convention was heavily focused on all things related to console games. They did have a computer area for e-sports, but that was the extent of what I saw. Not to say that I don't love console games, because I do - but most of my gaming has always been on a PC desktop. I did play Atari, Nintendo, SNES, and PlayStation games growing up, and have several favorites - including the Final Fantasy games. And to my surprise - there were a TON of Cloud Strife cosplayers. Wow! It's funny because when I used to cosplay 20 years ago, everyone cosplayed Sephiroth and not Cloud. Hey, I'm not complaining considering Cloud is one of my all-time FF characters.

There were a few highlights of the convention that I wanted to point out. One being that I had an AWESOME table neighbor named Key. We had a lot of fun, including her mom too! I met a lot of new readers and had some fun discussions with them. What was one of the coolest things that happened at the con was there were a few returning readers that had read my first and/or second book, and wanted to pick up the next installment. In those particular moments, it made my heart happy and all worth the years of blood, sweat, and tears that I pour into these novels. Okay, there is no blood involved, but you get the drift. Really though, these are the moments that make my entire year. I just want to say thank you to all of those who support me - it means so much to me. As for anything else, all good things must come to an end. Now I must return back to my everyday life. Just like any con, I return invigorated and inspired to work on my current WIP novel. I'm ready to rock and roll with my characters. Side note - I hardly took any photos of the con. And with those who were in their photos, I didn't want to post any photos without permissions etc. Speaking of photos - recent I snapped a few photos of my newest cosplay - Lady Elyathi! This was one of my sewing projects back in fall of last year. I planned on wearing this at the renaissance faire this spring, and wanted to capture some photos of it in case it got wrecked at the faire. We happened to go the weekend before Game On, and I must say that my costume held up extremely well, even in the wash! I'm not happy about the wig at all - it was supposed to be much wavier. Not only that, it was super small on my head - and I have a small head! At least it got the job done. My lighting in the photos are not my best work, but hey, it sets the mood for the character.

Other than that, I have been taking a writing break for a few weeks before I dive back into my manuscript. I do this every time I finish a draft. Breaks like these help me gain a new set of eyes for when I get back to work on my WIP. I take the time and do a ton of inspirational things - reading books, watching shows and movies, playing games - anything to help clear my mind. I have been trying to finish up my latest Skyrim mod. It is a mid-sized player home near Falkreath. Whenever I went exploring in a specific area in Falkreath, I always wished there was a cabin and/or home there. I got tired of trying to find the perfect player home mod, so I decided to go for it and make my own. I had done a little modding back in the original release, but it only consisted of followers. This has been a huge learning curve for me, but I have gotten a lot of enjoyment out of it. I will be making a post that solely talks about this mod soon.

Until next time! #gameonexpo #gameon #finalfantasy7 #cloudstrife #skyrim #skyrimmod #writing #cosplay