Sam and I met through Jake Finch, my friend and publisher at GenQ. Jake and Sam have known each other for years and one day, Jake said, "Hey - you two should be friends." Jake must have some kind of freaky friend-melding ability, because Sam and I have become super close.
When Sam and I first started getting acquainted, she had recently finished her MFA, and was preparing to launch her own line of quilt patterns under the name Hunter's Design Studio. She put together a Kickstarter campaign and took those patterns to Festival at Long Beach, where not only were her patterns picked up by shops and distributors, but her super awesome buttons as well.
I think our friendship really solidified around the time I decided to step down as creative director at Generation Q. This was a huge decision for me, and one that was very difficult to make, and Jake actually told Sam before I told anyone else. Sam called me and the first thing out of her mouth was, "I am so proud of you and I completely support you." She totally got why I had made the decision, why I wanted to forge my own path, and she gave me so much encouragement and strength. We ended up talking about all kinds of things that day, both about my life and hers, and it kind of set the tone for all our talks since then.
I started calling Sam "Samwise" (after Samwise Gamgee from The Lord of the Rings), because she is such a careful thinker, and, at the same time, so supportive and reassuring. Whenever I express doubts about something, Sam is always there to say, "You can do this—and I will help you figure out how." I can only hope I have given back to her at least a fraction of the wisdom and aid she has given to me.
When I talk about how grateful I am that I have made such good friends over the internet, I am talking about Sam. I have made a lot of friends—but Sam is special.
So whaddya waiting for? Go head over to her blog today and enter to win a copy of my book!
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