A Little History

Today I'm posting a little about my writing journey. You know, what got me to the point I am today? What drives me to write?

First, though HERE is the link to my ongoing contest. I need a cool, awesome name for this blog. Keep them coming; this is getting really fun! :)

Now for some backstory:

I was an intensely angry youth, but I hid it pretty well. I know everyone has a hard time through the teen years, but I took it up a notch. My parents divorced when I was 4, and my dad remarried. He died the summer before I turned 8 yrs old. I had no coping skills to deal with this, so I internalized it.

Things got really complicated at home when I was about ten years old. Without going into details, home lost all safety for me. Even my friends' moms didn't like them coming to my house. They didn't feel it was safe for their children to be there. Not that I had a great many friends, mind you. I liked the loner status--less to explain.

But I was developing a reputation in certain circles because of my temper. Some considered me dangerous when angered. I had developed a habit of bottling my emotions. If something hurt me, or angered me, I'd stuff it into this little bottle in my mind. Except that only works for so long before the emotions start spilling out--usually at bad times.

This is how I coped. I read, a lot. I made up stories and scenarios in my head and acted them out with my dolls, my friends--whatever worked. But it wasn't until I was in high school that I started writing things down. And it was writing that saved my life.

But more about that later. :)