Sometimes in life, things come full circle.

It's kind of a well kept secret, but I am a writer becuase of The Backstreet Boys. For serious. 


In 2003, I was bored, and I decided to look for some backstreet boys fanfiction. You know, the tales girls write in which they meet a celeb and he falls head over heels for her, and they dance off into the sunset. Synchronized dancing, of course. So i checked out fanfiction.com. Much to my chagrin, I couldn't find any BSB fanfiction. I read some fics anyways, and eventually ended up at the sistersite, fictionpress.

For a few weeks, I read stories. Dozens of them. Maybe hundreds. There were thousands of writers on that site who shared their work. And it made me want to do it. So I did. At 21 years old, without a single thought of it a few weeks prior, I decided to try and be a writer. I wrote a story called WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE? It was loosely inspired by my first real boyfriend. As soon as it was done, I started another. And another. I have since deleted my earliest works, but I have left a few up as a reminder of where I came from.

Recently, I started thinking of fictionpress again. I returned to the site and looked up one of my favorite stories. One of the more popular stories on the whole site. I was never a "big" author at fictionpress--not compared to some others--but I am proud to have started there.

I decided to see what one of my favorite FP authors was doing. If she was pursuing publication. Because there was not a doubt in my mind that she was talented enough to make it. Once we chatted--and I discovered she was indeed working towards publication--I offered to critique her novel. And tonight, I finally finished the critique, a little overdue, but complete.

It was an honor to read her work, after all these years, and to feel like I actually had something to offer. To realize how much I have grown as a writer since those early days.

This business is about evolving and growing and learning, and never accepting the status quo. Just as a ball player is always training, so are we. But it doesn't mean you should forget where you've come from becuase you're so focused on where you're going.

I hope I never forget to look back and reach my hand out. I hope I never forget what it felt to stand on the sidelines an wait my turn. I hope I never forget the talented people who are waiting for their big break.

So tonight, I am a little reflective of this journey.