Stephanie Kekeocha

Yes, I was very young. I think in 2nd or 3rd grade. It was a story about a family of eagles who lived in a tall tree. One of the younger eagles was scrawny and didn't know how to fly yet and therefore teased by his siblings. One day he fell from the nest, and the family was sure he had died. However, they didn't know because the tree they lived in was so tall that you could not see the ground. Anyway, months pasts and for some reason, they were to the group and found that the scrawny baby eagle was not only alive but had become king over the animals on the ground surrounding the tree.

I don't really have a process per se, but I can say I start with an idea. After my idea, I decide how to convey it, whether fiction or non-fiction, creatively or directly. This decision is based on whether my goal is to teach or simply inspire. Whichever way I choose based on my initial idea, I jot down my basic thoughts and then "sense" any and everything connected to that feeling or idea. When I do this, I get pictures, feelings, and ideas that I try my very best to put into words. I know this "sensing thing" might sound confusing, and I actually have a hard time explaining it. The best way I can explain it is by asking you to imagine the center of an onion bulb. Now, imagine that bulb as my idea or feeling. Then, imagine me observing the onion-like a puzzle and adding the outer pieces or layers as I figure out where they fit around the bulb. Those pieces are what I attempt to put into words. I hope my explanation makes some sense.