I have always loved writing. Okay, so that's a lie. I hated writing when I was younger. It was pure torture, especially since I was born in another country and never spoke English in my life until a few years prior. Thankfully, my childish brain was able to pick up English a lot faster than expected. I thank Dr. Seuss and "Green Eggs and Ham." The Berenstein Bears helped too. But as I grew up, first in the Queens' burrow, and later on Long Island, I learned to love the beauty of writing. The first book to ever capture my heart - at least the ones that weren't meant for kids - was "The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodgson. There was something about the writing that drew me in and rendered me incapable of doing much of anything else. I think that was also the first time I got in trouble for reading. Later, as my love of reading grew, getting in trouble for reading when I wasn't supposed to became my normal.

Then, in middle school, I read "Twilight." I was a die-hard Cullen fan until my high school life where I learned to appreciate the male body more, and thus fell in love with the sculpted beauty that was Taylor Lautner. "Twilight" was a fascinating book. While, in my opinion, the plot was subpar and the idea a marvel, it was the book that had me thinking. I mean, yes, I have actually had a thought before but this book and the theories and controversies surrounding it made me actually think about the book. How it was written, why it was written the way it was, what made the author take the route she did and just the book in itself. It made me rewrite the book in my mind. Ii got me thinking on how I would write it, how I would make the characters behave and feel, how I would like the readers to feel: outrage, joy, fear, love, and hate - all of it. It got me daydreaming about the book and the changes I would make to it; to make it better, in my opinion. From then on, I couldn't stop and did it for every book I've ever read. Either dreaming of how to make the plot better or figure out the plot of the next book in the series.

In the end, the result was the same: however the book ended was meant to be, the author was always right, at least for the story they planned. Shocker, huh?

When I spoke about this with an older cousin of mine, he suggested that I write stories of my own. At first I was cautious about it, unwilling to actually put my thoughts out there for people to criticize and degrade in the same way "Twilight" author, Stephanie Meyer, was brutally criticized for some time after "Twilight's" fame grew and the movies populated movie theatres everywhere. Some of the brutal reviews I read were hurtful and I wasn't even the author. It scared me. But I started writing anyway. I don't know what it was or why I did, but I started writing. I loved it, but I had no feedback so all I was left with was my thoughts, my words, and a lot of questions.

Was I good enough?

Is this as silly as I fear it is?

Why am I even doing this?

Is it worth it?

Then I found Wattpad. More like stumbled upon, but... I was browsing through apps in iTunes and wanted to find some good, free books. I was in a book rut and like a broke junkie needing a fix, I was desperate to find a new dealer - a kinder, and therefore cheaper, dealer. Wattpad was it. In less than an hour of finding and exploring the app, I was in love and a new member. It was still a month before I gathered enough courage to post my first story. I started with eight chapters before trying to update it every week. By the time I reached my two month mark of having my book out there, over three hundred people read my story. Every week. The comments I received were inspiring and beyond generous. I was an amateur writer at best and I received these loving comments that made my heart melt and boosted my confidence. There is nothing like the thrill of having people comment such kind words about my work on such a public venue.

There's nothing like knowing what you write matters. I truly believe that's what Wattpad is about; not so much the writing or the books but having a place where authors can either be anonymous or not. They write with a sense of freedom and maybe even accomplish something amazing - letting people know that their voices matter. Wattpad is more than an app, it's a safe haven for writers to write and read with little to no judgements. It's a place to be free from the fear that your work may not be good, but rather it's because people want "to be nice" or "just didn't want to hurt [person's] feelings". This a venue where the person matters, but the work matters more. Wattpad isn't just a fan-fiction powerhouse. Wattpad is a home for writers to go, for readers to love and for the love of reading and writing to meet in an inexplicably beautiful form. Because of Wattpad, I was able to find my voice and speak.