Me and Lani at BEA in June

True friendship is rare. Finding someone who’s on the same wavelength feels impossible sometimes, but every once in a while you get lucky.

Years ago, Lani Woodland and I met on the internet and bonded over mutual book obsessions. Particularly Twilight. This was back when the Twilight fandom consisted of a few hundred people and the forums at the newly opened Twilight Lexicon. As the phenomenon gained speed, we found chances to meet in person and an internet friendship turned into a real one. Years later, she’s one of my best friends and my writing partner, my sounding board, and (sometimes) my therapist.

I just spent the weekend in California with her celebrating her birthday and taking a few hundred pictures of the landscape for book projects (yay fun research!). It was awesome because we had a blast. I mean, who wouldn’t when the weather was fantastic, we ate way too much, and spent time wandering around Laguna and San Diego? but at the same time it sucked because it just reminded us that in person visits are once, or maybe twice, a year events. Living on opposite coasts is a horrid thing, but I guess that makes me appreciate having a friend like Lani at all. Meeting her was chance, and a very lucky one at that.

So Happy Birthday, Lani! Here’s to another year and the many fantastic things to come! <3