Paulo Coelho once said that "Writing means sharing. It's part of the human condition to want to share things - thoughts, ideas, opinions." Growing up, I was constantly writing. Whether they were little stories I wrote when I was bored in class, or the countless runaway letters I would write when I got in trouble, I was always writing. As I got older, I was always turning to writing when I had problems. My parents would find me in the basement, with a pad of paper covered in little scribbles that I had written while I was bored. In a way, writing was the way I got my thoughts out.

College is a stressful time for everyone, but it really took me by surprise. I was so used to the high school method of instruction, where they basically hold your hand through everything and hound you over late assignments. Coming to college, all of that was gone. In your 300+ lecture halls, your professors could honestly care less if you show up, and if you don't turn in an assignment, they'll just give you a zero and move on with their day. Once again, I was turning to my writing to try and deal with some of these emotions. While it wasn't the perfect method, it helped for a while.

As I developed my writing, I began to move into different formats and styles of writing, and I may or may not have started a blog (I'm not proud of it). While I was writing, I noticed that I was beginning to shut everyone else out. Emotionally, I was an empty shell. I knew that I couldn't hide in the pages of my notebook forever, I felt this need to start sharing my writing with a broader audience.

On one fateful June day, whilst scrolling on Facebook, I found an advertisement from this website called "Odyssey." They were looking for writers, and I took a chance and applied. I never thought I would ever get a call back, and when I was offered a position as a creator, I was floored.

Suddenly, all these ideas began flowing out of me, and as I learned how to format my writing in a more professional manner, I couldn't help but smile.

I'll never forget the feeling of pride when I shared my first article on Facebook, or when I broke 100 views on an article for the first time. It became therapeutic, and I was loving it.

As an Odyssey creator, I've learned more about myself than I ever thought I could. It gives me a platform to talk about practically whatever I want, and it gives me the freedom to be me. I've been able to interview musicians that I love, I've written articles that have brought me to tears while writing them, but more importantly, I made some of the best friends of my life. It can be hectic, it can be stressful, and I may not be the best at meeting deadlines, but I would never change it.

This is what I love doing, and I have no plans of going anywhere else. So to anyone who is reading this or consistently reads my articles, I hope you're ready, because I'm just getting started.