Writing, for me, is a fun way to escape the harsh reality of being an overworked, hormonal teenager in high school. When I was younger, I loved writing short stories in an old spiral notebook and hoped to one day be published. I loved letting my mind wander to the farthest corners of the galaxy to jot down some magical stories. Today, I continue to make this silly childhood dream come true. I always keep a little journal filled with funny quotes, funny memories that happened throughout the day, my worries, my hopes, and my goals. I love turning words and phrases into works of art. I started writing for fun when Santa gave me a Lisa Frank velvet journal for Christmas when I was in first grade. I loved it because I could color it however I wanted, and it was black velvet, so it was amazing. There was also a lock on the cover so I could hide all the deepest, darkest secrets and adventures of an average seven year old girl. Every night before going to bed, I wrote in this journal and signed “Love, Brisa” at the bottom. Most of my writing seemed to revolve around my cat, Princess. Because of my immense affection for her, I started writing short stories about a magical "princess" waiting for her prince to come and save her and live happily ever after. A few years later, I received another newspaper. This one was a light sky blue with bright red cherries throughout. I treasured this journal because my grandmother gave it to me. I felt connected to her because she also had an identical one. Even though this journal was small, I scribbled every blank space on every page. At this time in my life, I was in fifth grade and had recently discovered that I loved reading, especially books about famous wizards... middle of a page... no name, don't m didn't learn to write at all. The teacher made us keep a daily journal about weird and random topics, and it didn't help me improve my skills. I didn't learn anything about writing, grammar or literature. In academic writing, I received all the help I needed with writing, grammar, sentence structure, and essay formatting. I am now comfortable writing essays, copy for yearbook pages, research papers, and I even keep a journal again. Writing to me is above all a question of personal motivation. No one can force me to write, I have to discipline myself to take the time to read and write. Throughout middle school and high school, I learned how to write a well-written essay. I also learned how carelessness and procrastination can hurt my final grades. All it takes to be a good writer is a little elbow grease, hard work and a vivid imagination..