Being born to someone keen on the literary arts, Books and reading were a key aspect of my life instilled since I was young. I, like all others my age, was born in the early 2000s: so this was a conscious choice by my mother and one I appreciate to this day for the unique perspectives it’s given me. Before I could read myself I was being read to by my mother, and as soon as I could read I was reading: supplied with both new books and books I liked to the point of gladly rereading, chief among those in my early years being Corduroy (the chronicles of a plush bear attempting to find his missing button), and at a later yet still young age a book in regards to a monstrous teacher telling of ironic punishments. These two are my earliest books I can remember reading and not being read, and in particular the second book spoke to me in a unique way that always enthralled me. I have reason to believe its the reason as to why I still love anthology tales to this day, why I love short story collections, and all sorts of smaller yet fascinating tales bound into one grimoire.

The joy and passion that came to me for writing wasn’t as immediate as reading. That wasn’t something I’d foster till later in life, and of all things it’d come from me finding passion in writing school essays as opposed to my own stories. Even to this day, essay writing is something I enjoy: though I engage in other forms of writing nowadays. My love of writing, as soon as I discovered it, has remained consistent and incredibly strong: and has influenced a lot of my life and is already influencing my future. The pleasure of putting pen to paper (admittedly I prefer typing to physical writing) is intoxicating and ever enjoyable: whether it be reporting on even the most dull of SAT topics or attempting to chronicle the great tale of a hero of my own creation. It has influenced my course choices, my planned major for college, and even what colleges I intend to go to.

My mother is a book writer. Unpublished as of now, but passionate to her craft and constantly writing away: so her support towards my passion has always been there despite the differences. I plan to become a script-writer as opposed to a normal book-writer, though the core concepts in both are consistent and as such her support and recommended books have been helpful even if not specific to screen-writing. Her insistence on reading in an early age and to a lesser degree standard writing before I had discovered my passion has lead me to a fulfilling and well studied young adulthood. Her teachings of inquisitiveness towards a writers intention, general praise and positive reactions to my reading habits (On a good day, I can probably finish an entire novel or two if I have nothing else), and overwhelming support of the literary arts is quite possibly close to perfection for an aspiring writers childhood.

I don’t sit down quite as much to solely read as I once did admittedly; my life is consumed with other habits and writing. When I do however, especially due to the age old mantra “a good reader makes a good writer”, my choice of what to read remains similar yet different to my younger years. I love long epics, I love tales of adventure and sci-fi: this has been true for most my life. Though in my teenage years I have cultivated a love for horror, especially of the cosmic kind, which is something my younger self does not share. In a world of hustle and bustle, screens and television, while I may not read as much as my elementary school reflection: I like to find time to sit down, turn on my Billy Joel record, and dig deep into a fascinating novel for the night. And in admittance; there is no greater pleasure in life.