Have you ever had so much you wanted to say bottled up inside you but could never really talk about it aloud? Well, welcome to my world! Yes I do talk about things, all the time actually, but I don’t usually express what or how much it really means to me. And then there’s writing. Even though my name and face is on my work, there is this invisibility thing about it that makes it so much easier.

I haven’t always been a writer. To be completely honest I used to despise it. Every time I had to write a paper for a class I got so angry because I never thought it was good enough to let other people read. And then there was my junior year of high school. There was a contest that we could enter for a chance to win a fully paid for trip to Washington, D.C. for a week. I thought there was no way I could possibly win, but since the teacher was making us write the story for a grade in class I might as well submit it into the contest. Out of the whole junior class, which was about 200 students, they picked three winners. I never imagined I would win, but I did.

When I got to college I realized that even though I may not like my writing there was someone who did, besides my mom. Of course it was my junior year of college when I discovered that I really enjoy it. I realized that the papers I had to write for classes were just that, papers for class. They never really helped me express myself. Whereas my writing now is about whatever I want it to be.

For me writing turned out to be very important because I get to express myself. Not only do I get to express myself and give my opinion on things, but there is the wonderful way that nobody can interrupt you while you lay it all out there. It’s like a journal of Kristen’s life, but for anyone who is willing to read it.

It took me years to discover something I enjoy because I wasn’t really open to the possibility of it. My advice to you would be not to shut out the possibility of anything until you really try it. If you try new things or even things you didn't like in the past you may actually discover your hidden talent and that new career path you've been searching for.