I met a girl when I was a sophomore in high school; her name was Keen Malasarte and she has been my first inspiration for writing ever since. She was a few years older than me and I met her while she was working at a restaurant across the street from our school. I saw how hard-working she was and there was something about her that was intriguing. A couple of weeks later, somebody told me about her Tumblr blog. It was very popular and it still is. The moment I saw her Tumblr, I fell in love with it.

She was the very first inspiration for me. I never knew I loved writing until I started reading hers. Her writing styles and the stories she had to tell; it was just like my life. It was as if she knew what was going on in my life. My first writing started with Keen. I pursued writing since I was 14. I admired poetry, literature and anything else that had to do with writing. I write during my free time, on the train, during lunch break or at 3 in the morning when I am inspired to write something. I became a journalist when I was a junior in high school. I wrote for my school’s newspaper for two years and I became editor-in-chief by the time I was a senior. However, there isn't much freedom when you write for a public school newspaper.

Most of the content was edited and sometimes, the story that I initially wanted to write ended up being a different story than I expected. The story ideas were based on school-related-activities and most of the time, it wasn’t much of a creative writing. When I went to college, I actually started my own blog just like Keen. There wasn’t much of an audience since it was a personal blog. I still write and publish my creative writing to my personal blog until now. However, I needed a place where I can write it in an article form and actually reach out to someone. I just want my writing to reach to someone and touch a heart like Keen has always said. That’s all I ever wanted.

Odyssey is the perfect place for me. I can write about what ever topics I want and there is 100% freedom here. My editors are so amazing; they don’t change my story into something else. They work with me effectively and it actually feels like a team. I knew about Odyssey for a year now but never actually thought about being a part of it. I saw an article from a friend of mine from high school, who is now my editor-in-chief when I was a freshman in college. Her articles were so fun, entertaining and extremely relatable. She was actually the first one to introduce me to Odyssey because her article was the first one I’ve ever read. She inspired me so much to write for Odyssey. It was like we can write about college stuff and everything that teenagers can relate to. Sometimes, it feels like Tumblr (like for real) and that’s why I decided to write about Odyssey.

I actually love it so much. It taught me how to manage my time and how to be committed and dedicated to something you love. It is so nice to be a part of an organization where I can freely pursue my creative writing and share it with the world. Odyssey gives me an opportunity to voice my opinions and a chance to make a difference in this world.