From the time I was a toddler, I always loved to tell stories. I would tell stories to my grandma or act out stories with my dolls. Once I got older, I would write some of my ideas down-- poetry, short stories, you name it.

I was always proud of my approach to storytelling, until I showed the wrong person my work. Creative people have a habit of finding other creative people romantically interesting. As Creators, we understand the process of finding inspiration, creating, and the eventual writers block that ensues; however, this can lead to some unavoidable competition.

At first, it was nice to have someone who was as into writing as I was. I showed him what I was working on and vice versa. He was heavily into Sci-Fi and I was more into fantasy, but our differing interests worked. I always gave me him compliments, far too many now that I look back. Again, he was my opposite. He was always so critical of everything I ever showed him. There is a vast difference between constructive criticisms and just being a d—k. He never had anything nice to say to me about my work. Over time, I convinced myself I was a horrible writer. From the end of my freshman year of college until the second semester of my senior year, I stopped writing.

You heard me—I stopped writing. I stopped doing the thing that gave me the most joy and passion, which helped me through dark times. I stopped writing because some pretentious d—k made me feel I was no longer capable of producing anything of good quality. I only wrote papers for school and was highly self-conscious submitting them. I became paralyzed by the fear that I was no longer good enough to be a writer. Over time, and with the help of a few special people in my life, I overcame that fear. I graduated from college with a BA in English and write and edit for the Odyssey.

The moral of my story is to never let anyone tell you that you cannot do something, especially write. Writing is a beautiful form of expression that only requires passion and a knowledge of language. Do not let the naysayers stop you from pursuing your passion.