Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I was born in Topeka, Kansas but I had lived many places including, The Washington D.C. area, Florida, Texas, California, Missouri and now Georgia. It wasn't necessarily where I grew up that influences my writing it is the trials and tribulations I have experienced as I grew from a girl into a woman. Being the only child of a single mother there are certain situations and issues that I dealt with that other girls with two parent homes haven't experienced. Specific "demons" I had battled within myself having an absent parent. So when I write, I pour out my feelings as I felt in a time when I didn't understand that aspect of my life. Writing initially started off as an outlet for me to either pour my heart out into what I wanted to say but couldn't or to put myself in an entirely different world shaping my life as someone else into what I wanted. Writing has always been therapy for me. I am grateful to have this gift.
When did you first start writing?
I started writing in the sixth grade at Eisenhower Middle School in Topeka, Kansas. I had actually wrote a story about summertime. I had such a great time writing that poem and I was good at it. I never knew I could write so that was very exciting. It opened a new door for me to release without any judgment or having to hold back.
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