From an early age, I was an avid reader. My favorite childhood book was Mr. Apple’s Family by Jean McDevitt. I read it over and over. I have no idea what made that book special. I don’t recall the story, but I remember the title. I looked it up recently and found the author’s name. It is no longer in print; however, used copies are available for upwards of eight hundred dollars!

Reading voraciously fueled my desire to write. My parents encouraged my writing by gifting me with a manual typewriter when I was in sixth grade. I wrote a romance, a spy story, and a dystopian science fiction story. I wrote poetry and song lyrics, humor, and drama.

When I was in ninth grade my English teacher gently informed me I didn’t have the talent to write, not like some of my classmates did.

Boom! Teenage angst. That was it. I stopped writing stories.

I wrote papers for class, but I didn’t write fiction for probably ten years. But here’s the thing. I continued to love words and I continued to love reading.

With the maturity of my twenties came the knowledge that my old English teacher was full of herself and that I could write. I was just ten years out of practice. I read books on the craft and the business of writing. I attended writers’ conferences where I met editors, agents, and other writers. I contracted with my first agent, wrote and saw published my first novel: Honor’s Players. Then I wrote and published six more novels in the space of ten years.

Life forcefully took me in another direction, as sometimes happens (that is another story for another day). I’ve been a business systems analyst, a project manager, a product manager, and a Salesforce administrator. But through these careers, I always knew I was a writer, and somehow, others did, too. I was asked to write “How To” manuals, RFP’s, training materials, reference guides, marketing materials, etc. I didn’t groan when asked to write something.

Then the best thing happened to me.

I was laid-off.

So, I have come back full circle. I’m writing again, for you, for me, for anyone who is interested. I am excited to see where I go from here with my writing because, contrary to what my ninth grade English teacher thought, I know I can write.