When people ask me what I like to do in my spare time, the first thing that I say is reading. It’s the most common answer that I can think of, but it’s the truth. I love to open up a good book any time that I get. Saying that I love to read is an understatement. I adore books. Not just because I am an English major or because I was read to as a child, but because it’s something that brings me joy! It’s something that I have grew up with: staying up late at night trying to finish my book because it was too good to put down, or reading ahead in my English class because I couldn’t help myself, because it was too good not to move ahead.

Reading a book isn’t just words you read on a page or just something that you have to read for a class. Reading is an escape. It takes me away from my day-to-day life and brings me into a whole new world of discovery. From sailing on the high seas to going on a long journey in a magical forest, it’s always a new adventure. It forces me to leave my boring life behind and makes me feel like I’m in a whole new place. It’s an adventure you go on. It can last many weeks or a few hours. Regardless, it’s an adventure. Then there’s that feeling you get when the book is a series and there's at least two or three more. It’s like the adventure continues with the same characters that you've fallen in love with.

To me, reading has influenced my decision to be very imaginative. I want to be a writer. I want to tell my stories and have my words have an influence on people. If people like J.K. Rowling and Suzanne Collins can tell great stories about mysterious worlds and brave heroes and heroines, then why can’t I?

The downfall comes when the book you’re reading comes to an end. Every beginning has to have an ending. The hardest thing about this is having to find a new book. Even though it’s the saddest thing, it is also a chance to being a new journey. Your next journey begins when you turn the first page and are pulled into a whole new world alongside a new set of characters that eventually turn into non-existing friends.

To all of the great authors that I have heard of, thank you for the great rides, adventures and being a great escape from reality. For giving me great books that will always be in my heart. I hope to inspire young readers one day, too.