Author’s Humble Beginnings: Why I Write

 Author’s Humble Beginnings: Why I Write

 Many of you ask, “When did you first begin writing? When did you publish your first novel? How did you know you were a writer?”

Since childhood, I have known and believed that my writing is a gift. I also believe every writer knows in their heart that they connect with something greater than themselves when they spill "ink on paper" or see the words on their computer screen take many roots and weave content page after page.

This is my story. Please share who, what, where, why, when, and I’ll add how you knew you were a writer. I will step out of my comfort zone and tell you in the 3^rd person.

Cecilia emerged from a childhood cloaked in dust and the rumble of tractors, seven siblings her constant companions. The only escape was the world conjured on the pages of a faded-lined notebook. Today, Cecilia Payne-Kat Kaelin's stories, born from that rural idyll, grace Amazon and Barnes & Noble, are distributed worldwide; her words echo the resilience of a spirit that soared beyond its humble beginnings. She wouldn't stand out in the sleepy farming town of Western Kentucky. Just another face lost in the sea of overalls and sun-kissed cheeks. But beneath the unassuming exterior, dreams brewed. Not just dreams of escape but dreams of creation. Eight years old, scribbling in the dusty backseat of a pea-green Chevy – their trashed-out chariot. Ignoring the chaos of seven siblings, the clatter of the factory where her mother toiled, the distant rumble of her father's tractor.

And She Wrote

A flimsy notebook and a #2 pencil were her tools, the silence stolen from the car her sanctuary. Small in stature, she held ambitions that stretched as wide as the endless fields. At first glance, blending into the background was her specialty. Whether lost in the crowded aisle of Walmart or walking down Main Street, you'd never suspect the firestorm of dreams hidden within her unassuming frame. But beneath the surface, simmered an ambition born years ago, scribbled onto paper in the dusty backseat of a pea-green Chevy abandoned in her family's farming community backyard.

Escaping Became the Goal

Eight years old and surrounded by seven boisterous siblings, she craved a quiet corner, her world. That's where the #2 pencil danced across the flimsy pages of a lined tablet, birthing stories that offered an escape from the humdrum of reality. Her frame may have been small, but her dreams were as vast as the endless fields her father tilled on his tractor while her mother toiled away in the factory. As Cecilia Payne-Kat Kaelin, among her pen names, from eight years old, scribbling in the dusty backseat of a pea-green Chevy, to a published novelist and author weaving tales true to life, Cecilia lived the reality she once sought to escape.

Truth to Empower

Her stories blossomed with the hardships she had known, each sentence echoing the whispers of "Nana, tell me another true story."

One such tale swirled around a monstrous twister that uprooted giants - over fifty mighty oaks surrounding their family home. Yet, amidst the devastation, their house stood firm, a testament to her mother's unwavering prayers as she paced the front room and her siblings huddled under the bed. This "miracle," as her mother called it, fueled their faith and became a cornerstone of Cecilia's narrative.

Truth to Survive

Perhaps the most gripping story was her brush with death at the tender age of two. Spinal meningitis threatened to steal her breath, but her mother's love proved more decisive. Laying atop her back through the night, she defied the doctor's grim prediction. Who fueled whom with more strength in that desperate vigil? The answer remains a mystery, but Cecilia emerged, forever marked by year-long headaches, a constant reminder of her resilience. Cecilia's journey becomes a tapestry woven with the threads of hardship, faith, and an unyielding spirit. Her stories weren't just escaping; they were testaments to the extraordinary woven into the ordinary, whispers of courage echoing from a little girl in a pea-green Chevy to a Nana captivating heart with every accurate tale.

Note: My stories are my truth. Gifts are much like the stories of our lives. When we open the gift of life, we may not always like what we receive. From hardship, character and resilience are born within the struggles we endure. So, I write… 

Anyone can rise from humble beginnings, embrace life's wonders, and surpass their dreams. _Cecilia Payne Kat Kaelin