This post comes from a prompt from the writing group Word Nerds Unite, and it asks, “How did you become a writer?”

I was always fascinated with books.

If you let her, my mother will tell you a very charming story about her young son reading from a microbiology textbook out loud in her nursing class, to her great pride and mild embarrassment. She’ll say I was four. I don’t remember that.

I do remember age seven when I spent summer break from school writing little picture books with my nephew, who was five at the time. I do remember reading Choose Your Own Adventure books by the dozen, and I do remember having my Brooklyn Public Library card revoked for having too many overdue books. I remember the summer I spent at age nine, reading the dictionary page by page because I was in love with words.

In seventh grade, my English teacher had the class keep a journal, and I found that it was easier to get my thoughts down on paper than out through my mouth. I was bullied in Junior High School, and after a particularly bad day, developed a stutter that made it harder for me to talk, but easier for me to write.

High school was unremarkable, not exceptionally good, not especially bad. I was younger than my class due to a skipped grade and found communication difficult. I had a hard time overcoming a natural shyness and horrible fear of rejection. But I did enjoy writing; getting words on paper was the simplest way to make sure I could say what I wanted to say, exactly how I wanted to say it. By the time senior year rolled around, I had dabbled in writing short fiction, never intending for it to see the light of day.

Fast forward to college: English 201. I was 17, and a girl had taken an interest in my writing. That interest made me want to write more, and share my writing. Soon, I had a bunch of short stories circulated around teachers and friends, with very encouraging statements around it. I haven’t stopped writing since.

So, to answer the question of how, I guess the (rather cocky sounding) answer is, “I don’t know, I was always a writer.”

#2018 #writing #love #truestory #writingprompt #DIYMFA