Yeah, I know, it stinks...

I’ve come up with many story ideas since my earliest school days. In the second grade I had an idea for a cartoon spoof of Star Trek, called Star Cats. I told my friend about it, and together we came up with a whole cast of wacky characters. I spent many hours drawing cats with uniforms. It was all I could think about.

My first published story was in a collection of writings, called Loadstar, put together by my school district in 1993. It was about a bug from outer space, and I was so proud of myself. Another piece made its way into Loadstar in 1997; this one about a dragon who drank from a human stream and turned into a dinosaur.

In the seventh grade I became a part of a group of kids that wrote stories together in the computer lab after school. We wrote about each other, about our favorite shows, and even one sci-fi adventure about one of my friend’s evil, old school taking over the world. It was my first experience collaborating with a large group of people, even if our ideas were truly horrible. Unfortunately, few copies of those stories still exist.

Besides what I did in my Star Cat days, I didn’t draw much. In my freshman year, when Pokémon first became popular, I obsessed over those little creatures. I started drawing them, and discovered if I drew in a specific pattern, the pictures turned out much better. I practiced and practiced, even when I probably should have been doing other things. I soon discovered that I did have a bit of natural talent. I had an idea for a fan story, but had trouble putting it on paper. I told my best friend about it and she liked the idea. We wrote the story together; I came up with the characters and major, long-term plot and she took care of the little details and dialogue.

Last year I decided much to my family’s dismay that I didn’t want to be a vet, as I originally thought. I enjoyed writing and drawing much more than science and math. I still love animals, but I would rather draw them than cut them up. As I sought an art college, I discovered KCAI. After visiting, I knew it had everything I wanted. But I had had no formal art training, so my chances for getting in were practically non-existent.

Last year, I was in Art I. I'm so glad I took the class. I’ve learned basic technical terms, and had experienced drawing from life. I wish I’d had class sooner, but because I’ve have an interest in science, that had been my main focus.

Quite a bit of my art knowledge came not from art, but from French class. Two years ago, in College French I, we did a slightly in-depth study of French Art History. We learned everything from the prehistoric cave paintings of Lasco to Monet and Van Gogh. I enjoyed that unit more than any other we studied.

I love learning about art. I try to learn as much as possible, but there’s only so much I can teach myself. That is why I'm going to art school. I will admit I have much to learn.