Just. Keep. Writing.

It all began with an idea. Something that seemed to be fluttering around in my mind for nearly a decade before I finally found the courage (and time) to get my fingertips on the keyboard. No matter what I had on my heaping plate of life, or what challenges were set before me, getting this story out of my brain and into the world stayed with me for years. What began as a soft nudge in the back of my mind eventually turned into a shove, leaving me no other choice but to sit down and write.

I was probably in Elementary School when I first noticed that writing made me happy. I’m sure there were earlier moments before this specific one, but for some reason, this writing assignment clearly stands out when I think about my early years as a writer. It was Springtime, and our assignment was to come up with a creative story featuring the Easter Bunny. I distinctly remember ideas pouring out of me faster than I could write them all down, and before long, I had a story featuring a debonair Easter Bunny running an elaborate factory that produced magical Easter eggs.

I wish I could get my hands on this “award-winning” piece of literature, but even without seeing it in my fourth-grade handwriting, I can still picture the golden knobs and shiny gears of the factory I created, as well as the well-dressed Easter Bunny working swiftly to ensure every magical egg was ready in time for the holiday. It couldn’t have been more than just a few pages long, but it was my first true taste of creative writing, and from that moment, I just knew I needed to keep on writing.

And so, that is exactly what I did! I kept on writing. In junior high school, I had the privilege to be a part of our school newspaper, The Panther Press. As an “official reporter”, I learned how to collaborate on projects as a news team, uncover stories in everyday school life, and most importantly, how to nurture and strengthen my writing skills. It was a true blessing for me, and looking back now, I see it as something that helped to catapult me into the next chapters of life.

High school did come with a few inevitable distractions, but my passion for writing was something that always remained a constant. By the time senior year rolled around, I was fairly certain writing would be part of my career in some way, shape, or form. But in normal young adult fashion, the way this would happen still seemed a bit blurry, like trying to see a picture that remained out of focus.