I’ve always loved to read as a little girl. My Mom taught me to read even before I started kindergarten. I was always placed in the highest classes in terms of reading ability. I didn’t only read at school. My Mom would take me to the library once a week to get books for me to read for fun. I was never much into watching t.v. Even at the age of seven, I much preferred to sit in my room after dinner and read the next installment of “The Babysitter’s Club” book series. For both my ninth and tenth birthdays, my parents took me to Waldenbooks and let me choose as many books as I wanted. I lovingly stacked piles of “Sweet Valley Twins” (ninth birthday) and “Sweet Valley High” (tenth birthday) until I could no longer see over my head. At this age I also started loving to read magazines. I would spend all my allowance money on the latest issues of “Seventeen”, “Teen” and “YM”. I yearned for the place that reading transported me to. As I grew older I tested out more books, seeing which ones spoke more directly to me. I began at age 11 reading “Sassy” magazine and that was a huge turning point for me. I never picked up another teen magazine again (other than Sassy). That magazine spoke to me like a smart, cool, older sister. The language was fresh, the topics were meaty (instead of the generic “10 ways to get him to notice you” article in Seventeen, Sassy was pitching articles about teens growing up in a cult). I loved more than anything the writing style. I knew that was how I wanted to write. Honest, first person, and informative. I’ve all but forgotten about Sassy since it’s untimely demise, but I just learned there is a book on Amazon about Sassy that I’d really love to get my hands on. It’s called “How Sassy Changed My Life”.

So what were your favorite things to read as a child? Were there any that inspired you to write?