My earliest memories of writing usually involve my imaginary horse Lightning Bolt. It was elementary school and everything was written in pencil. Since I was (and still am) enamored with horses, I drew them as well. I have to say that I got to be pretty good. I illustrated my stories as I went along.

Since we lived in a city and didn't have horses at the time, Lightning Bolt and I had all of our adventures on paper. That was fine with me. He was much less expensive to care for that way! :) There was no limit to our adventures. We could do whatever we wanted for as long as we wanted and it didn't matter what time it was or what the weather was like. In our stories, everything was perfect.

I think the reason I love writing so much can be summed up into one word: freedom. When I write, the world comes alive with possibilities. Naturally I do my homework or write from experiences, but I can explore. I'm free to dive into different cultures, lands, times, even mindsets. The world - even the universe - is open to me.

When I write, I learn and stretch and grow in ways that aren't possible for me via other avenues. When I write, I soar, and that makes me happy.