Many thanks to Chris the Story Reading Ape for considering me for the Author Hall of Fame!

I often tell people that I knew I wanted to become an author from the time I was nine years old, when I met a children’s book author at my local library. While that’s true, my path to authorhood wasn’t linear the whole way through.

I was born with Cerebral Palsy, a neurological disorder that affects my nervous system and fine motor skills. It doesn’t impede my mental abilities, so I thrived in school, graduating with the seventh-best GPA in my high school class. I especially enjoyed English class and had a very active imagination. When I attended author Tracy Harrold’s presentation about writing, then, the prospect of combining my imagination with my academic skills seemed like a viable and natural fit.

I maintained that dream for several years and even submitted a couple of kiddie stories I wrote to a few publishers—who, not surprisingly, rejected them. As I grew older, I came to disregard writing as my goal, ironically enough, because it did fit into the confines of my disability. My contrary streak kicked in when some people who hadn’t even read any of my work started propagating it as what I should do. I realized they meant well, but I also concluded they were promoting it since I had so many limitations. I didn’t want to do something just because it was within my reach. I wanted to find something I excelled at in spite of my challenges.

On top of that, I contended with the logistics of me typing out a book, given I only have limited use of one hand. I’d already experimented with word recognition programs enough to know that my speech doesn’t register well with them. My sister and mom typed my little children’s stories, and we threw around the idea of me dictating my thoughts into a recorder. Again, though, I was on an independence kick, and I was determined to do whatever career I chose on my own merit. Plus, I figured my wonderful and well-intentioned mother wouldn’t be able to resist the urge to chime in.

In the end, my creative heart won out over my practical and stubborn mind. I had a love story building inside of me, and I decided it was only fair to give it a chance. I quietly started writing with the intent that I was keeping my options open, and to be honest, I kind of expected to fail, anyhow. I might as well make the effort and see where it went.

Fifteen years and five published novels later, I’m pleased that I did. During all that time I debated whether or not to pursue this, I worried doing so would only make me more acutely aware of my deficiencies. In fact, it’s empowered me beyond what I ever anticipated. Through my characters, I’m able to live out dreams I can’t attain under my current circumstances down to the smallest detail. One thing I frequently added to my early drafts was having a character walk away from an upsetting situation because I’m never able to do that!

I’ve also used my characters and plots to shed light on various aspects of living with a disability. My mystery series, The Unde(a)feated Detective Series, follows Minka Avery, a deaf detective. Though she doesn’t have the same handicap as I do, I share some of my feelings and the hurdles I’ve faced through her, even if it’s in completely different scenarios than I’ve experienced. It’s been very therapeutic to release such in this manner, and I always hope that my expressions help others to either cope with a disability or better understand those who do.

All said and done, I’m thankful the writing bug that bit me as a child didn’t despair when I tried to swat it away. I’d encourage anybody who has a dream but fears they’re not capable of it to give themselves a chance.