TwiLyghtSansSparkles

Maybe it has something to do with his fear of corrupting his friends with too much power. Like, maybe breathing the tensor dust weakens them enough to not let the other powers go to their heads. Or something. It sounded better in my head.

(This isn't supposed to be me, BTW. Just an Epic I thought of when I realized what an Epic named Doctor Funtimes would probably be like.) Name: Doctor Funtimes Primary Power: She can transform matter with minimal effort—turning a carrot into a gun with a snap of her fingers, for instance. Of course, she would be more likely to turn a gun into a live hamster, but that's just her. The only caveat: She can't transform living things, and she can't create human life. So in other words, turning a pile of leaves into a pile of kittens is doable, but turning a person into a statue is out of the question. Secondary Power: Teleportation. This served her well in San Diego. And Tucson. And Miami. And Newcago. Boy, did it come in handy in Newcago. That Fortuity guy wasn't happy about his toilet seat. Weakness: Evilness: She isn't evil. Calamity didn't work on her that way. She's just an Epic who likes to pull pranks, that's all. Okay, okay, so she did turn all of the sidewalks in downtown San Diego into Jell-O. But watching the Pink Pinkness try to run across that was hilarious! The way she kept going slip, slip, boing! All of those humans would've thought so, too, if the Pink Pinkness hadn't been so angry. Oh, she took it out on them? Psh. Some Epics have no sense of humor. The Pink Pinkness had it coming. So did those losers, for not joining Doctor Funtimes' amazing party! What do you mean, they'll never be able to look at a whoopee cushion the same way again? Costume: A trench coat that used to be beige before she threw water balloons filled with dye at it. Her khaki slacks are almost unrecognizable, thanks to the paint and ribbons covering them. Her long dark hair is almost always covered in glitter. Her socks never match. She hates it when they match. The only somewhat normal thing about her appearance is her square-frame glasses, and even then she changes the color daily.

I would call myself Doctor Funtimes. That way, whoever opposed me would have no choice but to call him/herself Captain Lame-O.

But…but…but then the Sears Tower could have become the Leaning Tower of Cheese-a!

Welcome! I am also a noob. What's your fantasy epic about, if you don't mind my asking?

Haha, thanks! I scare myself sometimes, so I figured, why not give that gift to others? Elsa Steelheart? That is an awesome name. Then again, it combines two of my favorite things, so I might be biased.

I would also add that an American high school student probably doesn't have the life experience to create a convincing, well-rounded character out of whole cloth. I wrote my first fanfics when I was fourteen, using wholly original characters of my own creation. They were complete and utter Mary Sues. The minute I wised up, I went back and deleted those stories and prayed no one I knew had read them. What taught me more about characterization was, ironically, using someone else's characters in new and unexpected ways. When I finished the Harry Potter series, I wrote quite a few fanfics changing one thing or another. Some of them were serious. Most were intentionally silly. A few were downright dreadful. But using those characters in my own stories taught me what characterization is, what makes a character compelling, and how to keep a character in character. Those lessons helped me develop characters of my own. Her world building, too, taught me much about how worlds are built and what makes them convincing to the reader. I know a number of authors are opposed to fan fiction of their work. While I understand and respect them for it, it still makes me sad. J.K. Rowling gave aspiring and budding writers a gift: a fully realized world with characters just real enough to make us want more. She was kind enough to let us play with it, knowing some writers would make a mess.

Good casting Lil' Wayne as Fortuity I pictured him as almost cartoonishly masculine, and I think Lil' Wayne could pull that off quite well. Andrew Garfield as Cody Not only is he a great actor, but he can do adorkable AND a convincing Tennessee accent! Terrible casting Psy (Gangnam Style) as Nightwielder Oppan Steelheart style!

That's fine. I've dreamed of having an MLP-inspired nickname for a while now. Awesome, then. I shall start with Mistborn. I love interconnected stories when they're done well. The last few interconnected-but-standalone stories I've read haven't been that good, so I'd love to see a writer who does them right.

Oh, cool! So all of the non-Earth stories are connected?

Note: I adore Steelheart. Fangirling over it is one of my favorite pastimes. And, as with all books I love, my favorite sort of tribute is to make it wacky. So welcome to the what-the-Calamity edition of Steelheart. How Newcago Got Its Name "Hmph. Chicago. I don't like it. Too much freedom." "I completely agree." "I'm going to start a new 'Cago. With blackjack, and hookers." "Extra hookers, please." "Shut up, Fortuity." "I said please!" Eternal Night: Origins "Hey, there, fella! Good morning!" *grumble* "Hey, Nightweilder! Beautiful morning!" "If you like that sort of thing." "Nightweilder! Good morning!" "And what is so good about it?" "Well, it's morning! Aren't you a morning person?" "No! I am not a morning person! I will never be a morning person, and….hm…." "Uh, Nightweilder? What's with the creepy grin?" "Yes….yes, I see it now…" "See what? You're creeping me out, man." "There can be no morning people if there is no morning!" Future Swearing "How could you?" "How could I what?" "I can't believe a good man like you would do such a thing!" "What? What'd I do?" "That dog of yours. Such a foul name!" "….His name is Sparky." "Think of the children!" Megan's Secret "Firefight is an illusionist!" Okay, Megan. Just play it cool. They don't know the other thing. They don't know that Firefight is-- "Huh. With all the stuff we've gotten wrong about Firefight, I wouldn't be surprised if he was actually a girl." Sparks. Conflux: Readers React Reader: Hey, everyone. I don't mean to interrupt this super-intense interrogation scene, but I just wanted to say that you guys ROCK! Tia, you're smart; David, you're amazing; Abraham is a real stand-up guy; Cody's awesome; Prof, I knew you'd be awesome the minute you walked in wearing that black lab coat; and Conflux…you're the best! Can I hug you? Prof: …. David: …. Abraham: …. Tia: …. Cody: …. Conflux: I like hugs! Reader: Okay, um, this is awkward. I'll just, uh, let you get back to doing your thing. You guys are awesome! Prof: That was weird. Cody: Weirder than me? Prof: Nothing is weirder than you, Cody. Conflux: But….but I like hugs. An Epic Recovery "David, what are you saying?" "I'm saying they're dead, Tia. Prof…Megan…they're both dead." "We got better!" "Prof! Megan! Wait—why are you talking in English accents?" I am Divine! (You Sure about That?) Steelheart said unto David, "And now, little worm, thine own weapon shalt be thy demise. Didst thou really think thou couldst defeat a god?" And he pulled the trigger. And David said unto Steelheart, "Stop exploding thyself. Stop exploding thyself." But lo, Steelheart could not, for David was exploding him with his own hands.

Haha, it's actually neither. I started using the screen name TwiLyght when I was fifteen, several years before the Twilight books were even published. Then, when the Twilight books came out, I'd get questions about when I was going to do a Twilight fanfic (since I was on FF.net at the time). So I changed it to TwiLyghtSansSparkles, which just added another layer of confusion when Friendship is Magic became popular. But, oh well. I like FiM and am not very good at coming up with screen names. Oooh, that Mistborn one sounds interesting. I had kind of fallen out of love with high fantasy, but a world where the Dark Lord wins sounds fascinating!

I'm a relatively new Sanderson fan, having been converted via Steelheart and The Emperor's Soul. Any suggestions for what to read next?