I was pregnant with my first child and newly married. At the time, I felt overwhelmed by the severity of my pregnancy symptoms and the marital issues my husband and I were unexpectedly facing. I felt alone. Out of nowhere, the first line of the story came to me, and so I started writing -- the characters and their voices just sort of arrived. I often wonder where they came from. Ironically, after my husband read the story, he sort of fell in love with me all over again and began to look at me with fresh eyes. I guess you could say writing it saved my marriage.

Writing consumes so much of my time, and yet, I have never gotten paid for any of it. So I often ask myself this question and wonder if I am wasting time. I listen and I observe more than I talk. So most of my opinions only, ever, come out on paper. And that always feels good, to sort of throw it all out there. I think I write, because it’s the only place where I feel free enough to be unedited, and because I enjoy creating a stage for the interesting characters, and voices, I often meet.

It feels weird.