I am gearing up for something epic. Unfortunately, it involves snow. Fortunately, it involves fantastic company, great conversation, my new laptop, baked goods and a moose! Therefore, I will forgive the necessity of packing sweaters. In a few weeks, I shall be at this writer's retreat seeing Gothic Girls I have long missed, meeting tons of wonderful people I only know and admire online, and a few people I don't know at all aside from the fact that they have written awesome books. (Remember when I raved about THE REPLACEMENT? And HOW TO SAY GOODBYE IN ROBOT? And I'm not allowed to say, yet, how much a loved THE NEAR WITCH but I *loved* THE NEAR WITCH! Yeah, these sort of people.)

How excited am I?!? See previous Rhino.

If you haven't already, visit Maggie Stiefvater's post about it and ask a question! Or read Breena Yovanoff's announcements (which includes other great things). And what I may be most looking forward to is more Jackson Pearce whose vlogging knows no bounds and I was stunned to learn that her hair really is that shiny and that she really is that funny/witty/clever *all the time*! I could just sit back and watch her go. Like this:

So, yeah, I'm excited!!! But now I should go write.

Today I feel like Rhino, the #1 hamster fan in Bolt.

I'm just about at the six-month countdown for the release of my debut novel and I'm looking around at those who I've been traveling with (and these and those...) on this journey for the past two years and am struck, wide-eyed, wondering how I could be so lucky. That's what it's like to be a fangirl amongst heroes in this industry and be welcomed along for the ride. I can't tell you what that feels like, really, but it looks something like this:

This is AWESOME! This is *totally* awesome! Yes! YES! Let it begin!!!"

And this is mostly thanks to all of you.

Thanks! You're beyond awesome. In fact, you're Be-awesome!