merry christmas

y'all, Christmas is in three days. 

sorry i just really love this gif xD

in those days, a decree went out from Caesar Augustus

that all the world should be registered.

this was the first registration when Quirinius was governor 

of Syria. and all went to be registered, each to his own town.

and Joseph also went up from Galilee, from

the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David,

which is called Bethlehem, because

he was of the house and lineage of David, 

to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.

and while they were there, the time came for her

to give birth. and she gave birth to her firstborn son

and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger,

because there was no place for them in the inn. 

....

and an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory

of the Lord shone round them, and they were filled

with great fear. 

and the angel said to them, 

"fear not, for behold, i bring you 

good news of great joy

that will be for all the people. 

for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior

who is Christ the Lord."

luke 2:1-7, 9-11

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

how do you all celebrate Christmas?

<3 <3, 

allison 

choose joy

lately i've been reading, watching the nightly news

don't seem to find the rhythm, just wanna sing the blues

feels like a song that never stops

feels like it's never gonna

gotta get that fire, fire, back in my bones

before my heart, heart, turns into stone

.....

oh, hear my prayer tonight, i'm singing to the sky

give me strength to raise my voice, let me testify

oh, hear my prayer tonight, 'cause this is do or die

the time has come to make a choice

and i choose joy

.....

though i walk through the valley of the shadow of night

oh, with You by my side, i'm stepping into the light

i choose joy

.....

i need that joy, joy, joy, joy

down in my heart, down in my heart to stay

joy│for KING & COUNTRY

CHOOSE JOY.

this has become a particular maxim or motto for me, especially during this year. it was one of my new years resolutions. i even wrote a college essay on why joy is my favorite word.


this post is about how important it is for us to choose to be joyful, every day. being joyful doesn't mean that you're happy all the time. cuz everyone knows that is not possible.


happy. 
     feeling or showing pleasure or contentment


joy. 
     an emotion that’s acquired by the anticipation, acquisition or even the expectation of something great or wonderful 

from the web ;)

HAPPINESS is a feeling, sort of a rush of euphoria when you do something that you enjoy, when you read a book you love, when you watch a favorite movie. when suddenly, the world feels okay and everything around you is great. it doesn't last, though. i liken it to when you drink coffee, like the rush of caffeine you get. 

JOY, on the other hand, is a long-lasting emotion, something you can have no matter how dark or hopeless a situation. it's holding onto the belief that God's in control no matter what, and while you don't feel happy or don't know when you'll feel happy again, you can have joy. 

 may the God of hope fill you with all

joy and peace as you trust

in Him, so that you may overflow with

hope by the power of the

Holy Spirit. 

romans 15:13

personally, this hit close to home. i realized that too often, i would wake up and feel grouchy or just "out of sorts". and that's how the rest of the day would go. or when something goes wrong and you feel just down. i struggle with this a lot. and it's okay. 

i'm not saying that you can't ever feel sad or blah, because those are normal human emotions. we're supposed to feel sad. we're supposed to get angry. we're supposed to feel frustrated and just done. it's normal. 

but even when you are, hold onto the fact and truth that God is watching over you. that even when it feels like things are spiraling out of control, it's going to be okay. 

it doesn't matter if you wake up and feel irritated or annoyed or sad. you have the power to choose to be joyful, to act joyful towards your family, to realize that no matter how tired or frustrated you feel, that you can make the choice to be joyful. 

 though you have not seen Him, you love Him;

and even though you do not see Him now,

you believe in Him and are

filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.

1 peter 1:8

it's definitely not easy, but it's a choice that we can make. one that i'm trying to make every day. it helps me to write it on my wrist, so i can look down and be reminded at key moments to be joyful. i then remember how lucky i am, to have such a wonderful (and yes, loud and occasionally obnoxious xD) family, to have a job, to own my favorite books. i know it's not the same, but i often link joy with gratefulness. 

i hope that i've made sense here. it's a tricky topic, and one that i'm very passionate about. but it's hard to express my feelings into words, and i hope that y'all get what i'm trying to say. ;) 

so, what do you think?

really hope i've

made sense, xD

merry christmas,

allison

honestly can't think of a title / random funny things

just a messy, disorganized post full of random things i've heard + experienced while working at a bagel shop. enjoy ;)

*7am*
teenage guy: hey i'll have a bacon, egg, + cheese sandwich, to go
me: okay, that'll be $4.50
guy *pays + leaves a penny as a tip + walks away*
me: wow, thank you. have a great day.

lady: do you sell chopped chicken liver?
me: um, no
lady: okay, i'll just take this cream cheese
*after she leaves*
my boss *gags*: i will never sell chopped chicken liver

*guy pays for his order*
me: do you want a receipt?
guy: no thank you, carol
*he leaves*
me: uhhhh???
my boss: did he just call you carol?
me: um yes?

*three minutes before we close, a lady walks in*
my boss, under her breath: oh no, not her. haha, you get her!
*my boss disappears into the back kitchen*
me: oh great

guy: hi, i want some bagels without holes in them
me *coughs + tries to keep from laughing*: um, i'm so sorry, sir, but all our bagels have holes in them
guy: ugh, fine.
*he literally has me pick up every bagel + scrutinize the holes*
*after he leaves*
me: does he not know what bagels are??

shoutout to the guy who sounded just like the godfather xD. also shoutout to the guy who ordered a jalapeño bagel with strawberry cream cheese. *gags*

also, my new favorite thing to get at the shop (bc i get a free bagel per shift ;) is a bagel with bacon, butter, and tomatoes. sounds weird, but it's amazing. xD

hope y'all are doing well! 

least favorite Christmas song?

mine's a tie between

"Santa Baby" and "Last Christmas"

xD

merry christmas,

allison

currently / autumn

didn't get a chance to write an October or November wrap-up post, so this is kinda a summary of what i've been doing lately. ;) very random. 

R E A D I N G

a lot, xd. 

seriously, i'm in that phase where i'm reading about ten books at a time + not finishing any of them. ;P

i'm reading: 

• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (for the second time in five months, xD)
• Muse of Nightmares (ok the first one was WAY BETTER)
• Frankenstein
• The Children's Homer (ugh)
• Quo Vadis
• Blue Lily, Lily Blue (haha, again....)
• The Lie: Evolution / Millions of Years

yup. 

had a mini binge session one week (recovering from stress of midterms x_x) + finished The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein, House, and Trusting God (wow, what a combination, xD). Trusting God is amazing + changed how I think about God's sovereignty. definitely recommend.

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein was really good -- especially as I'm not a fan of the horror genre, but it was more of a psychological thriller. definitely recommend. 

House (Peretti + Dekker).....was interesting. It unsettled and disturbed me, mainly bc I'm not a horror / supernatural fan. I definitely skim-read it, and finished it feeling very unsettled. so, not sure if I would recommend. ;)

W A T C H I N G

a medley of things. "The Crimes of Grindelwald" was AMAZING. and i need to see it again. 

• The Office
• 24 
• Studio C + JK Studios
• booktube (Cherry Wallis, jessethereader, etc.)
• holiday cooking shows
• CHRISTMAS MOVIES (we have this tradition where we only watch Christmas movies during December. so far, we've seen "Elf", and are going to watch "White Christmas", "Home Alone", "It's A Wonderful Life", and "The Griswald's Christmas Vacation")

per usual, the Office (amazing + hilarious). also, we started watching 24 with my parents, and it's really good! there's definitely parts we skip (violence, mostly), but the concept is so cool + intriguing! each season is set during one, twenty four hour day. so each episode is one hour, in real time.

L I S T E N I N G

compiling playlists for my WIPs is so much fun, xD. also went to a for KING & COUNTRY concert the other day, and it was utterly amazing. it was a Christmas concert, but they also played all of my favorites, "joy", "burn the ships", "amen", etc. SO GOOD. 

• Hamilton soundtrack
• Owl City
• Mumford and Sons
• for KING & COUNTRY
• Adventures in Odyssey (#noshame xD)
• CHRISTMAS MUSIC (y'all, i have a five hour playlist. with michael buble, pentatonix, bing crosby, nat king cole, etc.)

R A N D O M

cherry vanilla bagels are the best. also, my bagel shop just started selling gingerbread bagels. <3

ALSO, i'm officially in love with the starbucks toasted white chocolate mocha. it's amazing. also the peppermint mocha is amazing. it literally tastes like christmas. ;)

i preordered the Bucky funko pop (from infinity war) and i cannot wait till it comes! story: when my dad took my brother and i to comic con a couple months ago, my brother and i scoured all the booths for a Bucky funko pop (seriously, every single booth, my brother would look at every one <3 <3). apparently, they're really rare, so we didn't find any. oh well, xD. update: it's not coming until the day after Christmas *sobs*. apparently there were production issues. x_x

i had senior pictures taken a couple weeks ago. it was interesting, as i've never really had professional photos taken of me before. 

had a college interview the last week of october. it went really well! the guy who interviewed me was super nice + loved Narnia, so we had a brief geek out session, talking about our favorite books. xD

y'all, Christmas is less three weeks away.

also, finals are next week. please send help. also i had a spanish oral presentation on thursday. x_x but it was about lin-manuel miranda, so that was really fun! ;)

also, just wanted to say thank you for putting up with my very random posting schedule recently. for awhile, blogger wouldn't let me schedule posts, so i was just posting whenever i had a chance. i think i figured it out, so hopefully i'll be posting regularly on saturdays and occasionally on wednesdays. ;)

also, nothing to do with this post, but HAVE YOU SEEN THE AVENGERS 4 TRAILER? cuz i'm still freaking out over it. literally, i almost cried when i saw it for the first time. 

what's up with y'all?

favorite for KING & COUNTRY

song?

also, what are some of your

favorite christmas traditions?

merry christmas,

allison

know the novel part two / within the wip

i'm joining Christine's linkup again, with part two of Know The Novel. it's a three part linkup, and you don't have to be doing NaNo to participate. ;)

i'm using my current WIP, "Versus", for the linkup.

how's the writing going?

it's been...going. xD this is a hard time for me to write, as i'm in the thick of exams, projects, and studying for finals. not to mention balancing normal schoolwork with my part time job. also doesn't help that i woke up last week extremely sore (reallly hope i'm not getting the flu), and even my fingers are sore. -_-

but i hope to get a good amount written over the holidays. 

what's been the most fun aspect

about writing this novel so far?

superheroes! seriously, i'm so excited to be writing about superheroes. i absolutely love comic books (and grew up reading classics from the Silver Age), so it's a dream come true to be writing about them. 

has your novel surprised you 
in any way?

i have this sketchy idea of how it'll end, which it totally different than i had originally thought. so yea. xD

also, probably the fact that i'm totally pantsing this one. normally, i have a general idea of how i want my story to end, plus a one page "outline" of snippets i want to include, stuff to happen, etc. for this one, i'm totally just discovery writing, and it feels great. we'll see how it turns out, though. xD

what do you think about your 

characters at this point?

who's your favorite to write 

about?

so far, i love them. ;) my favorite so far is Charisse, who's dark and angsty yet believes firmly in the concept of justice for all. but i also love writing the morally grey character, Evan, who's gullible and naive yet sweet and charming. he also loves tea <3.

if you were transported into your novel

and became any of your characters, 

which one do you think you'd be?

would you take any different actions

than they have?

hmm, i would probably be Charisse. i tend to be overly snarky at times *cough*, and can definitely see myself in the dark, goth-like girl. although i would 100% use my superpower all the time. not to be a villain, but just to be swooping around the city in a swath of smoke would be so much fun. 

give us the first sentence or paragraph

and then 2 (or 3!) more favorite 

snippets!

urghh, okay. please remember, this is not edited. ;)

first paragraph: 

Rainy nights in Emitton City were the worst. 

No, they were dangerous. Lethal, even. For at night, all those with hidden powers, or gifts as they laughably called them, roamed the streets. Uninhibited and thirsty for their kind of fun. 

snippet #1: 

Charisse didn't wait to hear his threats. Heedless of the consequences to follow, she flung her hands before her, channeling all her strength. Grey smoke poured from her black painted nails, surrounding Jakob and physically pushing him through the locked door. Charisse ran to the door, keeping one gray-tinted hand firmly on the splintered wood. 

snippet #2:

Rainy nights for the cursed were even worse.

Evan Madsen pressed his cheek against the cold foggy window, his eyes reflecting gold back at him. His hands, sheathed in the familiar leather gloves, curled into fists as he continued to gaze out the window at the empty, silent street. 

snippet #3: 

They sat on the edge of the building, their legs dangling in the cool winter air.

Charisse squinted at the setting sun, smiling slightly as golden rays of light danced over the buildings of Emitton City. Shadows flitted and ducked as a crisp wind sent twigs and dead leaves flying through the air. 

have you come across any 
problem areas?

urghh, maybe the plot? xD. i have a general idea of how my story starts and ends, but i'm not exactly sure what's going on in the middle. so, we'll see. *shrug*

what's been your biggest victory with

writing this novel at this point?

connecting really well with my characters. ;) it's hard for me to write as i can't devote all the time i want to, but every time i pull up my google doc, it's so easy to dive back into my characters. ;) also, i just really love them. xD

be honest, have you killed any 
characters off yet?

NOPE. not yet, at least. ;)

take us on a tour of what a normal writing

day for this particular novel has looked like.

where do you write? what time of day?

alone or with others? is a lot of coffee consumed?

do you light candles? play music? get

distracted by social media? tell all! 

i try to squeeze an hour of writing per day. butttttt......that usually does not happen. i'm lucky if i can even type a paragraph per day, that's how crazy it's been lately. so, i'm really looking forward to the holidays for some nice writing time. ;)

but, i write alone. (if you can call living in a household of seven as alone, xD). yesss, coffee and tea are consumed. currently, i'm loving my well-rested herbal tea + my cafe mocha creamer for coffee ;). no to music, as i get easily distracted. although sometimes i play the sherlock soundtrack. 

well, hope y'all enjoyed this. ;) and i hope that y'all had a lovely thanksgiving!  

how's NaNo going?

and did any of y'all go
black friday shopping? 

<3 <3,

allison

30 things i'm thankful for

this post was inspired by this beautiful post by kara. here's thirty small things that i'm thankful for this year. 

1. late night drives listening to gene autry music

2. early mornings spent drinking coffee and reading my bible 

3. getting a package in the mail 

4. staying up till midnight reading a book

5. doing art with my little siblings

6. electric blankets on rainy cold nights

7. blanket scarfs and knit hats on windy walks

8. four hour long christmas playlist ready for november 23

9. family movie nights

10. long drives spent listening to adventures in odyssey

11. watching "the crimes of grindelwald" with my dad and brother

12. rereading harry potter

13. baking christmas cookies while listening to fK&C

14. spending all day making homemade applesauce with friends

15. movie nights with friends who are basically family

16. spending sick days drinking tea and watching "the office"

17. doing calligraphy and watercolors 

18. getting generous tips at work

19. bacon & butter bagel sandwich (honestly, it's really good)

20. the new christmas album by pentatonix

21. beautiful sunsets while driving home from school

22. my ravenclaw sweater

23. knitting while listening to the hamilton soundtrack

24. sleepovers with friends

25. spending hours at panera with my parents, talking about college and future plans

26. waking up to snow

27. a job that i love with an amazing boss

28. reading "the chamber of secrets" to my little siblings

29. getting letters in the mail

30. God's unconditional love

what are y'all thankful for this year?

and, 

important question. 

do you support listening to christmas music BEFORE

or 

AFTER thanksgiving? 

i wholeheartedly support after thanksgiving. ;)

<3 <3,

allison

words that make me smile

last week, i wrote a post on the words that i hate, words that gross me out and make me gag. this week, here are some words that i love and make me smile. ;)

. baba ganoush

seriously, this is my favorite word (s) of all time. i wanted to write a college essay on it, but my mom wouldn't let me. xD

idk why i like it so much, maybe it's how it's said. ;)


. smirk

again, i just like how it sounds.


. baboon

;)

. aesthetic

although it's hard to spell, i love how pretty the word is. ;)


. grin 

idk, just love seeing this word. *shrug* i'm weird.

. button 

makes me smile. ;)

. gnarly

really fun and descriptive word. also very fun to say.

. muggy

it sounds so cool!

. frolic

:D

. smug

that part from "the office":

michael: "well, it says here that jim halpert is smudge and arrogant."
jim: "oh, i think you mean smug."
michael: "see? arrogance."

. broccolini 

just try to say this word without smiling. i dare you.


. spaghetti

and all other types of noodles + italian dishes (fettucini, etc.)


. nefarious 

it sounds cool and epic and evil. i love it. xD


. slushy

it's such a fun word to say! xD

well, there you are! after that disgusting post last week (apologies), here's one with all the words that i really like. 

apparently i'm posting on 

fridays now? 

xD sorry about my random

schedule, hopefully i'll figure it

out once school settles down.

anyway, which words are

your favorite?

how's NaNoWriMo

going for y'all? 

<3 <3, 

allison

in memory of stan lee

i got the text at two pm yesterday. my friend, in all caps, texted me that Stan Lee had died earlier that morning. and i almost started crying, at the cash register of the bagel shop i work at. my boss asked me what's wrong, and i told her. she gasped.

i texted my parents and my friends, and we all grieved over the sudden death of someone that has made such an impact on our lives, especially our childhood. my dad grew up reading the same comics that my siblings and i read now. comics were, and are, such a big part of his life, and now ours.

it's so sad to me, because it feels like the death of my childhood. now, that sounds overdramatic (and looks overdramatic as i'm writing this ;), but in a way, it's true. i talked about how much Marvel Comics means to me here (and yes, i'm using the same pics. i'm sorry, i have zero energy + time to take more pics as i've got a spanish exam tomorrow + physics homework -_-).

with geniuses Jack Kirby and Steve Dikto (among many other brilliant artists), Stan Lee created so many incredible characters, both heroes and villains. without him, we would have never known Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, Black Panther, Thor, Dr. Strange, Dr. Doom, Doctor Octopus, Magneto, the X-Men, and many, many more.

part of the reason why Marvel's superheroes were so popular and remain so today is their humanity. Stan Lee said in an interview in 1992 that his goal was to make them feel like "real flesh-and-blood characters with personality", thus giving them fears, insecurities, and humor. he revolutionized the superhero mentality, giving people heroes that were very similar to them.

Stan Lee truly is a superhero. through his imagination, he gave numerous generations heroes to look up to, heroes that exemplified traits that we aspire to have, heroes that served our country and protected the people.

in the words of Chris Evans (from a tweet he posted yesterday):

there will never be another Stan Lee. 

for decades he provided both young and old with adventure, escape, comfort, confidence, inspiration, strength, friendship, and joy. 

he exuded love and kindness and will leave an indelible mark on so, so, so many lives. 

excelsior! 

thank you, Stan Lee. 

thank you for giving me childhood heroes that i still love. thank you for illustrating the classic battle between good and evil. thank you for inspiring me to write my own superhero books. thank you for the MCU, none of which would be possible without your incredible imagination and original characters. thank you for your commitment to providing quality entertainment for children and adults throughout countless decades, by writing hundreds, if not thousands, of comic book issues. 

apologies for the rambling

post, but i really wanted 

to write one in memory of 

Stan Lee. :)

who's your favorite Marvel

superhero? 

mine's a tie between 

Marvel Girl, Bucky Barnes,
and Spider-Man.

<3 <3,

allison riera

words i strongly dislike / aka HATE

so, there is a running joke in my family that i'm super weird about words. it started this june, but i have no idea how. all i remember is sitting in the passenger seat of our van, heading to the beach with my family, and my dad throwing words at me like "what about this one?" me: "eww gross." dad: "okay, this one!"

summary: i am a very literary person. i love to read and, therefore, words have a special + vivid meaning. thus, certain words are absolutely disgusting and graphically descriptive, and make me gag. i apologize in advance for the disgustingness, xD.


. moist

DO I REALLY HAVE TO EXPLAIN THIS ONE??? i think it's a universal truth that everyone hates this word. seriously, i looked it up. it's the grossest word according to a nationwide (?) poll. *gags*


. damp

it's just gross, okay? i don't know why it bothers me, but ewwww.


. snigger

ewwww. idk, maybe it's the way it's said, but it really grosses me out.


. puddle

blehh. when i told dad this one, he said, "so this sentence would bother you? a puddle of moist, damp mildew." and i gagged.


. backwash

'nuff said.


. snuffle

some things....just don't need to be explained. they're just gross.


. cocoon

this is actually my dad's idea...this word really grosses him out. it's okay when used as a verb, but the noun usage is *gags*.


. casing

every time we have sausage for dinner, my brothers love to gross me out by using this word as often as possible. x_x

. mildew

I'M SO SORRY FOR HAVING SUCH A GROSS BLOG POST!
me: ooh this is a great idea.  i'll write about all the really nasty and disgusting words.
me *after writing it* : oh no, what have i done. i'm going to make everyone sick.

I'M SO SORRY! unless i'm just the weird one and these words don't bother you?


. stump

yup.


. digit

in reference to fingers. *cringes*


. stubby

fun story: at a family lunch with my grandparents + aunt, uncle, + cousins, i was telling my aunt about our "game" (dad and i try to find words to gross each other out), and she thought it was hilarious.
update at next lunch: my aunt tells me that now, her family is doing the same thing, but to find the words that gross "cousin allison" out. xD


. pouch

for some reason, this word really bothers me.


. burrow 

just looking at this word makes me want to gag.


. congeal

again, some words are just nasty. like this one.


. molt

-_-

. tub

relatively new addition to my growing list of nasty words. i was in physics class last week, and this is how the conversation went:

friend #1, reading from textbook: place the tub on the board-
me: ew, tub is a gross word.
friend #2: huh yea, i can see that.
*five minutes later*
friend #3: OH MY GOSH, tub is a nasty word! i can't stop thinking about it! okay guys, no one say tub anymore. we'll say container.

and for the rest of class, we made everyone say container instead, xD.

y'all, i am so sorry for this disgusting blog post, xD. next week, i'll have a post with all my favorite words, really good descriptive + vivid ones that instead of gagging, make me laugh. ;) 

what words gross you out?

or am i just the weird one

that's super sensitive to

words? xD

who's excited for "the 

crimes of grindelwald"

ME!

<3 <3,

allison 

h a l l o w e e n 2 0 1 8

halloween '18 was a night of craziness and laughing. it was crowding around the kitchen table, bumping elbows and eating tacos. clapping and grinning at dumb jokes, passing bowls of rice and beans.


it was carving a pumpkin with my little siblings, getting sticky goop and seeds all over the porch and my clothes. it was listening to hamilton and carefully sawing through layers of pumpkin.

it was taking too many pictures, of running to the door at the doorbell ringing. laughing at costumes and scaring my brother by hiding behind doors. shuffling cards and playing music way too loud, raiding the candy bowl and throwing starbursts everywhere.






it was my friend and i dressing up as the winter soldier, and laughing as everyone said we looked identical. (also the guy who asked if i was bionic woman <3)


it was walking around the darkened neighborhood with my friends and brother, them laughingly saying i was their chaperone (as i've passed the age of trick or treating). it was one of my friends and my brother dancing obnoxiously in the cul-de-sac, waving a lightsaber in the darkness.


it was jumping on the couch in the basement, knocking elbows and knees into each other as candy was poured from bags. it was fighting over chocolate bars and throwing jawbreakers at each other.


it was curling up on the couch with all my friends + brothers, the lights dimmed and us laughing and talking about everything. of pretending not to hear when our parents called for us to come up.


of taking pictures and pictures, wanting to keep this day a memory forever. it's my last halloween at home (#college next year 0_0), and i'll miss these days of sugar and laughter.

how did y'all spend

your halloween? 

also,

what's your favorite 

type of candy?

cookies + cream

hershey bars are

my absolute favorite

<3 <3,

allison 

know the novel / part one: introductory

today, i'm participating in a brand new linkup created by the amazing Christine Smith! it's a three part series, over three months, and i'm very excited to do it ;).

anyone is welcome to participate, and you don't have to be doing NaNo in order to participate ;).

i'm using my current WIP, "Versus". ;) there's going to be a post sometime next week fully introducing it, xD

what first sparked the idea for this story?

hmm, probably my childhood of reading Marvel comics. ;) i've always wanted to write a superhero story, and after i read "Renegades", that really sparked my interest in writing one. so, i developed characters + a rough idea of a plot, wrote a sketchy + loose outline (one page, xD), and here i am. ;)

share a blurb!

Charisse Kim just wants to fit in and forget her family's dark reputation as the villains with otherworldly powers. Unwilling to identify herself with them, Charisse refuses to reveal her own superpower, controlling and dissolving into smoke at will. 

Meanwhile, Evan Madsen conceals his own power out of a terror of injuring people. With a touch of his hands, he can turn anything into gold. A power easily corrupted and taken advantage of. A power that destroyed his childhood. 

The two meet at the coffee shop they work at and form an unlikely friendship. And for awhile, Charisse and Evan feel like they belong in a city of misfits and villains. 

Until everything changes. 

A superhero suddenly arrives in the city, determined to destroy the dark villains. Evan, angered by report after report of people with superpowers terrorizing and injuring innocents, decides it's time to rescue the city and thus becomes Alchemy. But at what cost? 

Charisse is disturbed by the merciless actions of the mysterious Alchemy, who claims he's saving the city. And when the beloved superhero becomes like the very villains he despises, it's up to Charisse to don the moniker Psycho and fight back. 

Friends by day, foes by night. 

Who becomes the hero? 

where does the story take place?

what are some of your favorite aspects 

of the setting? 

the story takes place in a dystopian, futuristic world, where select people are born with superpowers. the powers are referred to as otherworldly gifts, and no one knows where they come from. the world is divided into numerous cities, each governed by a Council. 

"versus" mainly occurs in Emitton City (name subject to change ;), a particularly desolate city. the city is comprised of factories and dark, shadowed alleys, thus giving the city a smoggy, dark atmosphere. 

i like how cliche the setting is....city with tall buildings, dark smoke and smog filling the air, narrow alleys, cobblestoned streets. very superhero-esque, xD. 

tell us about your protagonist. 

in the eyes of the city, Evan is the protagonist. the hero, the one who destroys the villains, no matter at what cost. 

according to her moral code, Charisse is the protagonist. she fights back against injustice and cruelty, believing firmly that no matter how evil a person is, they deserve a fair trial and justice. 

therefore, both characters are protagonists and antagonists. ;)

who (or what) is the antagonist?

ummm, probably just the concept of what defines a hero. if that makes sense, xD. is the hero the one who defeats the villains, even tho he's merciless? or is the hero the one who fights against such merciless killing, believing that every one deserves a fair trial? 

in their alter egos, Alchemy and Psycho are each other's antagonists. 

i can't say much more, because i don't know  because #spoilers. xD

what excites you most about this novel?

SUPERHEROES. 

seriously tho, i've dreamed of writing my own superhero story. i'm so excited to create my own superheroes + supervillains, giving them unique powers, + writing a story similar to a marvel comic book. 

SO EXCITED, xD. 

is this going to be a series? standalone? 

something else?

so far, it's a standalone. we'll see if anything changes, xD. i find that i'm better with writing standalones, as i like wrapping everything up in the end. *shrug*

are you plotting? pantsing? both?

besides a one page "outline", 100% pantsing. that's how i work, xD. i find that writing outlines stresses me out, as of now, i don't know how this story will end. :/ 

i'll write a post about my writing style, but a summary: i come up with characters + a really rough story plot. then i write a messy first draft, sort of "discovery writing". i have a list of things that i know that i want to include, like random snippets of dialogue or events. ;)

name a few things that make this story

unique.

hmm, i'm trying to spin the cliche of superheroes treating their powers as curses / gifts. ya'know, the x-men line where Storm, who can control the weather, says, "There's nothing wrong with us." and Rogue, who can kill with a touch of her hand, says, "yes, there is."

it's the opposite in my story. Alchemy views his power as a gift, while Psycho thinks it's a curse. 

share a fun "extra" of the story.

pinterest board! 

also, brief soundtrack: 

everybody knows / sigrid

the king arthur soundtrack / specifically the devil + the huntsman

bohemian rhapsody / queen

carry on wayward son / peter hollens

the winter soldier sountrack 

say something / pentatonix

are y'all planning to join

Christine's linkup? 

also, are you planning

to dress up for halloween? 

 my friend and i are going 

as the winter soldier. ;)

<3 <3, 

allison