Annie and Ion together are so much fun for me to write. It was hard to wait this long to introduce Annie to the readers. But this was the right moment for her to make her grand entrance. :lol: Even if it caused Reuben to make a... uh.... "grand exit".
Every single conversation is a minefield, everyone else breaks the rules they tell you to follow, and you know something tiny you do will set that social minefield off somehow.
This is so,
so a familiar a feeling for me. Conversations with people I don't know really well are exhausting for me because I am constantly worrying about how I am coming across and analyzing everything I want to say, everything I already said, everything I almost said but then didn't, and checking whether or not I am wearing the right face expression for the topic being discussed. I end up missing a lot of what other people are saying as a result, which makes things even more awkward, and then of course that gives me another whole set of things to feel anxiety about. One of the many reasons I became good at writing, it's
way easier for me than talking.
I'm not sure if you and I have similar experiences or not, it sounds like yours may be somewhat different from mine. My struggles are largely anxiety based and stemming most probably from experiences with bullying a long time ago. But, I am honored that you find things you relate to in these characters. Annie, Ion, and honestly even Reuben, derive a lot of their personality from my own internal struggles. So even though I have a lot of fun with them, and ultimately I just want to tell an entertaining fantasy soap-opera story, there is a deeply personal aspect this set of characters and their experiences as well.
