Emerald City Comic Con was this past weekend, and as it was the first con I had been to since GeekGirlCon last October… I might have gone a little nuts in the Vendor Room/Artist’s Alley. But honestly, what better place to spend your money than in a GIANT room filled with HUNDREDS of amazing, nerdy creators? I can’t think of any.

I had the best time at this convention, and I can’t wait to read my new comics and hang my new art. Also, this weekend is Sakura Con — which will be similar, but will also likely have a lot of different stuff. So… depending on how much self control I can actually exercise, I might have another one of these videos coming soon. Who knows.

Okay. I’ve had 5 Fandom Friday bookmarked for months and months, and even though it’s totally right up my alley — I just haven’t done it yet. So! That ends today! Today, I am delving into this blog link-up thingy! Woo!

So this week, the topic is “5 Times I Totally Fangirled”. I am a fangirl of many, many things, but there are very few things/people that make me stammer and squee and lose my composure. Usually I can keep it together, but there have been those few moments in my life where cool-as-a-cucumber Kristina might have freaked out a little. Here are the ones I can think of:

1. Meeting “Topanga” from Boy Meets World aka Danielle Fishel at VidCon. When I got word that Danielle Fishel was just chillin’ at the con, I dropped everything and ran. Seriously. If you weren’t born in the late 80’s ish, it’s probably hard to understand just how important Boy Meets World was to our generation. It was everything. It was life. Fridays meant new episodes of Boy Meets World, and I swear to god Mom if you try to make plans for me that conflict with TGIF I will scream. It was a good time to be alive. Anyway, I started by taking some creeper selfies with Danielle Fishel in the background, but then managed to get this gem, pictured below.

2. Meeting “Shirley” from Community aka Yvette at MyDamnChannel. I was asked to be on weird little show for My Damn Channel that involved being interviewed by a mildly inappropriate cat puppet, and lo and behold… so was Yvette Nicole Brown. Nevermind the extremely bizzare parameters of the situation; I got to sit in a green room and make small talk with Shirley from Community. And it was great.

3. Meeting “Andrew and Tara” aka Tom Lenk and Amber Benson at LeakyCon. I’m just going to put it out there – after following Tom Lenk on Instagram for a few years, I can astutely deduce that he’s a weird dude. But he’s a weird dude in Buffy as well, where he’s also my favorite character. So meeting him was pretty awesome, and meeting Amber Benson was just a nice bonus.

4. Almost but not quite meeting R.L. Stine at New York Comic Con. I have no picture, because it didn’t happen. I’m still hoping to get to shake R.L. Stine’s hand someday, but that day is yet to arrive. I heard he was at New York Comic Con and I LOST MY SHIT. I realized I missed his panel, ran to his signing line, saw it was A MILE LONG and cried my way through the rest of the convention. Someday, Mr. Stine. Someday.

5. Meeting Ken Jennings at a PAX after party. Most people laugh at me when I tell them meeting Ken Jennings was a highlight of my life, but let’s get real here – this guy is awesome. My dad and I were already avid Jeopardy fans, but we were ALL ABOUT THAT IT when Ken Jennings went on his 74 game streak. I think I watched every single episode during that time. I don’t even know why; I was just fascinated by watching history being made. He’s also hilarious on social media, and a nice dude in person.

There are so many people I’d love to add to this list, but I guess I have my whole life to do that! Really I just need to meet J K Rowling. I don’t know how, or when, but it needs to happen.

Woo! If you’re interested in 5 Fandom Fridays, the official home for it is here. I hope you enjoyed this post and I am looking forward to doing more.

This past weekend was Emerald City Comic Con and I had the most amazing time – and, to everybody’s surprise, I also managed to film a video while I was there! I am historically terrible at remembering to film at conventions, so I am quite proud of this feat.

This con has grown to be my favorite one of the year, and between the cosplay, the time with friends, and the incredible art/comic books I walked away with (I am such a sucker for artist’s alley) all I can say is how thankful I am that I get to start convention season this way, year after year.

If I got to meet or talk to you at the con, it was wonderful to do so! I hope to meet many more of you at the other conventions I will be attending in 2015. If you want to see a full list of where I will be, you can do so here.

I was so pleased with my cosplays and will be posting photos of those as soon as I get them back. Be sure to be following my Facebook and Instagram accounts for the most current news on my costumes.

Life has been fun lately. Not to say that it isn’t fun the rest of the time, but I made some big life changes recently and I’m really enjoying it. Between my new job, to really diving into cosplay, to turning my YouTube channel into a book channel, I’m very happy with how I’ve chosen to spend my time lately. I hope you’ve been enjoying what I’ve been creating as well. <3

Hey guys! Are any of you going to Emerald City Comic Con here in Seattle? I sure hope so, because it’s going to be AN EXCELLENT WEEKEND! I figured I would post this a bit early, in case you want to know what I’ll be up to and where to find me this weekend.

First off – I will of course be cosplaying. I have been working my face off, which has been exceptionally challenging in tandem with my new full-time job. Needless to say, after many nearly sleepless nights, I am so, so, so excited to finally show these bad boys off.

Also, I’m going to be on a super-fun panel on Friday that you won’t want to miss!

The Couple That Games Together
Room: Hall J (WSCC 3B)
Date: Friday, March 27th
Time: 2:00PM – 2:50PM

This will be my and Joe’s second time getting to be a part of this panel, and I can’t wait. We’ll be discussing the benefits and challenges of being a couple that games together – be that board games, card games, video games, etc! it’s such a fun and interesting topic to delve into, and people always have so many great questions! We had a great turnout last year and I’m hoping this year is even bigger!

Other than that, I’ll mostly be hanging out in the various “cosplay” areas of the convention (including the main entrance room by the windows) and trying not to spend all my money in the expo hall/vendor area. I am so pumped for ECCC, and glad it’s always my exciting start to convention season. Imagining walking around with my army of Disney Princesses on Saturday is making me giddy with anticipation.

If you’re planning on going to Emerald City Comic Con, let me know what you’re most looking forward to seeing! And of course – I hope to see you there.

Hey guys! Here’s my March book haul!

I’m super happy with the new books I’ve added to my collection, but I’ve also realized I need to take an active stance on not buying any MORE books until I’ve put a healthy dent in the ones I already own. What’s your TBR like? Excessive? Let me know in the comments!

I’ve got a few cool things I want to fill you guys in on, stuff I’m working on and whatnot. I’ll just throw it all together in a little update blog because, why not?

1. I decided (about a month ago) to put my head down and actually start editing one of my NaNoWriMo novels. I am making absolutely no promises about what this means, except that it’s a thing I am doing. I just thought it was worth mentioning that I liked my 2014 NaNo novel enough to focus some serious energy on sorting through the mess that is my first draft, cleaning it up, and potentially giving it to some friends to read to help me turn it into… something.

Mostly I wanted to let you guys know because unlike the thrill of NaNo and writing that first draft, it turns out that editing is an extremely solitary activity with no way of sharing anything until it’s done. So, if I’m quieter online for awhile, that’s probably why. If you were following me during NaNoWriMo you already know this, but the novel is called “Delaney Unlaced”.

2. My Patreon page is still a thing, and I try to take an active effort to keep it new and exciting as often as I can. Especially now that I have a 40-hour-a-week day job, it’s harder than ever to prioritize what I use my extra time for. I’ll never stop making YouTube videos, but after that – Patreon really helps me decide where to dedicate those precious few remaining hours. Want to be able to influence the types of things I’m creating? What new projects I work toward? Here are a few of the goals I’m considering, that you can help make possible by becoming a patron!

I’m always curious to know which of these ideas/projects people are the most excited about (and there are of course other ones listed on the site; these are just the bigger ones). If these sound interesting to you at all, or are things you’d like to see me do, consider checking out my Patreon! I would never ask for something for nothing, so in addition to these overall goals, there are other perks available for becoming a patron (including being part of the Secret Facebook Group, getting your link in the sidebar of this website, joining my monthly Google Hangout, etc).

Again, don’t feel any pressure to use Patreon. I’ll never make it a requirement for watching my content and I won’t think less of you if you don’t care to use it. But I do have to make sure that potential new readers/viewers at least know it exists at all!

3. Costumes, costumes, costumes. I’ve been hard at work getting my cosplays together for Emerald City Comic Con, and it’s been a crazy amount of work – especially Rapunzel! Curse you, Rapunzel!! There will be pictures to come, of course. I seriously can’t believe how much work it’s been. If I seem a little crazy over the next few weeks, it’ll be because of this costume. Dear god. So much hair. There’s so much hair!!

That’s about it for me right now. Be sure you’re following me on Twitter and Instagram for more frequent updates about costumes, what I’m reading and general news. It’s been really difficult not having the same amount of time to interact with you guys, which is why I am so adamant about keeping this blog current.

I don’t want it to feel like I’ve gone away. I’m right here! I’m still making things! Love me!

Until next time,

Kristina xoxo

Okay. I am determined to keep current with my videos on this blog, STARTING NOW. However, this was not the case for a few months there, and because of that, we missed a good chunk of videos I posted on YouTube. So! This post is going to be another good ‘ol fashioned roundup of the videos of note over the last 2 months.

So, first – Joe and I buddy read Ready Player One, which was an amazing book that we both loved. Here is our joint review:

Then I wrapped up all the books I read in January:

It was feeling pretty book heavy up in here, so I took a little breather to talk about something extremely important for Valentine’s day… which is, of course, OTPs:

Then I shared my favorites with you, for the month of February!

I posted a number of other fun videos, including books hauls and unboxings, but to find those you can go check out my channel directly. Which of the types of videos that I make are your favorite? What do you look forward to the most? Let me know!

Here are the books I completed in February! I read a total of 9 books, hitting 9 of the challenges in the Popsugar Reading Challenge.

I am zooming ahead of schedule for reading 50 books this year, but I have a feeling that convention season is going to slow me down a bit — and that’s just around the corner!

What are you reading right now? Have you read any of the books I talked about in this video?

There’s something incredibly magical and infectious about knowing the weather is getting nicer. I realize it’s only March, but here in Seattle the sky has opened up and the sun’s peaking through, and I can feel it in my bones.

Seattle’s a funny place, because when the sun comes out, we know our time is limited. The sun is a finite resource here, and when we have it – we use it to its full potential. As soon as those clouds part, the city goes crazy. We plan vacations. We have picnics. We start jogging again. We sit on our decks. We make lists, we spring clean, we dust off old hobbies and vow to start doing them again.

This happens to me every year, and I am always thankful for those first, early rays of sun that really get my muscles pumping (both actual muscles and creative muscles). And after a solid three months of adjusting to my new job, I think I just might have started to find some semblance of a life/work balance again, which means I actually might have the capacity to take on these new summer plans I’ve got churning in my mind.

I am a chronic over-achiever. I mean this in every sense of the word – while I love saying yes, yes yes to everything, it often leaves me with not enough time to accomplish everything I set out to do, stress knots in my shoulders, and a to-do list that would make even the most organized cringe.

But at least when the weather is nice, I have that extra something on my side. Energy. Motivation. Positivity. The promise of long car rides with friends, inspiring conventions, seeing people we never get to spend enough time with, camping trips, and best of all – getting stuff done.

I have a lot of things I want to do this year. My convention list has eight events and counting, I’ve got a laundry list of cosplays I want to make, and I’m trying to bite the bullet and finally edit one of my novels. I miss doing Team Hypercube regularly. I would love to take a personal vacation for once. I’m still trying to read 50 books this year, work exercise into my routine, and keep in better touch with the people I care about.

It’s going to be a crazy summer. But somehow, the sun on my face on this chilly March morning is telling me I can do it. And whatever I can’t accomplish – that’s okay too. Because we’re only capable of exactly what we’re meant to do.

What are your plans for the good weather season? Does the hint of sunshine ramp you up? Let me know in the comments, and let’s all try to encourage each other!

Okay, I wasn’t going to do this reading challenge, but hearing other people talk about things is the biggest catalyst in making me want to do those things. So here I am. Doing the Popsugar 2015 Reading Challenge. I’ll be updating this list all year long as I tackle the challenges, so check back if you want to see how I am doing.

Challenges Completed: (46/50)

A book with more than 500 pages: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
A classic romance (Persuasion)
A book that became a movie: Angus, Thongs and Full Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison
A book published this year: The Shadow Cabinet by Maureen Johnson
A book with a number in the title: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
A book written by someone under 30: The Last Girlfriend on Earth: And Other Love Stories by Simon Rich
A book with nonhuman characters: The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black
A funny book: Sex Criminals Vol. 2 by Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky 
A book by a female author: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
A mystery or thriller: The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson
A book with a one word title: Hazed by Mark Sable
A book with short stories: The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes
A book set in a different country: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
A non-fiction book: The Opposite of Loneliness 
A popular author’s first book: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
A book from an author you love that you haven’t read yet: Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
A book a friend recommended: Cinder by Marissa Meyer
A Pulitzer Prize winning novel: All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
A book based on a true story: Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman
A book at the bottom of your TBR list: An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
A book your mom loves: Old North Dakota German Cookbook
A book that scares you: The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
A book more than a 100 years old: Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
A book based entirely on its cover: In Real Life by Corey Doctorow and Jen Wang
A book you were supposed to read in school and didn’t: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
A memoir: Bossypants by Tina Fey
A book with antonyms in the title: Glory O’brien’s History of the Future by AS King
A book you can finish in a day: The Woods: Vol 1 by James Tynion IV
A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to go: Magical Girl Apocalypse
A book published the year you were born (Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency)
A book with bad reviews: Doll Bones by Holly Black
A Trilogy (Magic 2.0)
A book from your childhood: Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn
A book with a love triangle: The Shadow Cabinet by Maureen Johnson
A book set in the future: Cress by Marissa Meyer
A book set in high school: Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick
A book with a color in the title: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
A book that made you cry: The Winner’s Crime by Marie Rutkoski
A book with magic: Spell or High Water by Scott Meyer
A graphic novel: A Wrinkle in Time the Graphic Novel by Madeleine L’Engle/Hope Larson
A book by an author you’ve never read before: This One Summer by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki
A book you own but never read: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
A book that takes place in your hometown: Off To Be The Wizard by Scott Meyer
A book that was originally written in another language: Magical Girl Apocalypse
A book set during Christmas: PS. I Still Love You by Jenny Han
A book by an author who has your same initials: The Kite Runner Graphic Novel by Khaled Hosseini
A play (from joe!)
A banned book: On The Bright Side I’m Now the Girlfriend of a Sex God by Louise Rennison
A book based on or turned into a tv show: The 100 by Kass Morgan
A book you started but never finished: Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley