Storytelling is a unique and very old form of creativity that everyone has experienced. Whether as a child being read bedtime stories, watching movies, reading books, or hearing them orally from family members, storytelling is a basic foundation of human society. It has existed with us for as long as we have been around and it has a great impact on people, their outlooks on things, and the way they interact with the world itself. Good storytelling is always something that has enraptured me, and has been something I have craved to learn more about; however, there seems to be very little on the very basic structures of storytelling other than the basic plot graph. Storytelling is more than that, much more. This is why I have been searching for ways to learn and study more storytelling, and its techniques, on what makes a really compelling story.

As far as recent projects, I have been focusing on my mental health and doing some freelance web design work, as well as finishing my service dogs training. I have been having great anxiety with drawing over the last two years but am working through it at the moment but still want to keep creating - and want to do that in more writing, to hopefully make them into art projects down the line. I am not sure exactly what I want for the future at the moment, but I want to be doing something creative, where I can work independently but also have people to consult and collaborate with, as I love bouncing ideas around with people. I want to eventually travel to Japan and maybe live there for a year or two, hopefully getting to study the art there or learn calligraphy. I'm always open to trying new things. All I can say for the future is that I want to bring to life the stories I've created so far, and continue to make more whether it's through writing, artistic means, or both.

I have struggled with depression for a good part of my life, but the one thing that always made me feel better was a good story, whether that was a TV show, a game, or a book. A couple of stories really hit home for me and have forever affected me. The book 13 Reasons Why was one, as I read it when I was around 13 years old when the depression and C-PTSD got dark, it all came crashing down on me. I felt like I was drowning, I felt that living wasn't worth it, but that book made me realize that my death would hurt others, and I thought of my mom. That book affected the way I thought about it, seeing the characters, seeing what happens after, seeing what those who took their own lives don't get to see after the fact, it made me think about the people around me. My friends at school, my mom - I wouldn't be there to know if I hurt them by leaving. It really made me stop and think. 

Koe No Katachi - also known as a silent voice here in America, was a manga that also really affected me. I never knew anyone who was completely deaf, I had my grandparents who were hard of hearing and a friend who had one ear with a hearing aid, but never anyone completely deaf. It made me realize how hard it must be, and why are we not taught as children something like sign language? I remember a park I use to go to that had spinning blocks with the sign language alphabet on it, and I used to sit in front of it and practice, but I didn't know what it was for, who used it, and never saw it in school. 

Inuyasha is an anime that I began watching and finished during a two-week period where I couldn't get out of bed. I finished the show but it was the only thing that I was excited about, even just a little bit. I didn't want to eat, or shower but I could lose myself in that story, I could find some relief, a comfort watching it that wasn't anywhere else at that moment.

Song of the Sea is an indie film about a selkie girl who can't speak and her older brother. This movie hit me hard too, as I look similar to the little girl and the brother at the beginning of the movie does not want anything to do with his sister. I come from a home where my brother grew up resenting me, just for being born, similar to the girl in this movie. Although the movie has a happy ending where the brother changes his view on his sister, my brother didn't, but it was something I always wanted. Although it was something most people can relate to, as siblings don't always get along, for me it was so real, and it was bittersweet but in that story, I can imagine I can feel what it would've been like if things were different.

I always find something new in stories, they have always been there as a comfort for most of my life. They have helped me grow, learn, and empathize with others. Stories have helped me realize I'm not alone, that others can relate. If I can make a story that can help even one person, it will be worth the world to me.

I love the collaborative creative process when making stories, as I find other people's opinions and views very intriguing and important, as they often bring things to the table I overlooked or didn't even think about. I love sharing the plot, the meanings behind the story, and asking if it comes through. Did they get the message I was trying to bring, was it clear, or do I need to add something to make it clearer? I know the world and the characters, I know what I want but I have to remember they don't know the research and everything I have been reading and learning about. I also want to make a story that is relatable. I also love comedy and humor, so I always try to put that in my stories as well, either in the character themselves or the situation they may find themselves in. 

I have created a few stories (mostly in writing form), some with more fantastical elements but the story message is very real. The story (called Dialectic) tackles judgment, the judgment humans often make of one another without really knowing them, and how that can affect and alter the truth. Another story, called Pique, comes from my own personal experience as a kid ski racer and tackles the crushing feeling of anxiety, and the pressure a kid feels from a parent when pushing them to be the very best at something. My other story doesn't have a working title, but deals with government conspiracy in a fantasy style japan, with an unlikely pair of personalities who have to work together, and how they end up helping one another with their struggles, and becoming friends. I also have plans for a small comic, called Adventure Pup, about my service dog Navi. It's more comical, as it's about what Navi thinks being a service dog is from her perspective.

I love sharing these stories I create because when it makes the readers excited, I get more motivated to continue the story. Breathing life into a story is nothing short of spectacular. I don't think there's anything more amazing to be doing.

 A good story can capture the world as its audience, and that's what I want to do. I want to capture people with stories and not just any stories. I want my stories to spread awareness about mental health, the stigma around it, and service dogs. I want my stories to change how people view mental health and their loved ones who may be suffering from it. I want stories that will help people, uplift people, challenge people, and make them better people.

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When I was little I used to go to a place called Long Beach Island every summer. My grandmother had a beach house there and was on the end where you could walk from her house on the bay and across the street maybe 500 feet and be at the other side of the island where the beach was. I used to wake up before sunrise, take my beach towel and a book, and sit outside as the sun rose and listened to the quiet sound of everything around me; the birds, the waves, the fish jumping, the boats. Something about that little island captured my heart, and I was always told how someday it'd all be gone, that the ocean would take it, and all it would take was one bad storm. So when I was there I enjoyed it as much as I could, but nothing was as lovely to me as when it was early morning, and no other human was awake. I can no longer go to that island, but I yearn for it, for it was a second home to me. 

I have started buying more eco-friendly materials. ones that can be washed and reused - like I bought reusable cotton rounds that help to clean your face. I bought a water flosser so now I no longer have waste from floss strings or those little plastic flossers. Where I currently live is very rural and not a lot of stores have eco-friendly options, and am currently renting, but I hope to make more changes to become more eco-friendly. I hope I can have a house where I can use the yard to compost and cut down on the amount of garbage I produce more

My website is ClickMyth, which is also my portfolio