I’m Tiana Clark. There’s a lot of things I would like to do in life, but the most important one is to write. I’ll read books — actually devour them. The formula is simple enough, don’t stick to one genre or website, but expose yourself to a wide mixture.

Books, blogs, websites, newspapers, as long as it’s readable I’ll be willing to read it. I’ll practice writing. In fact, I’ll try to type up a draft every day if possible. I may steal from the greats, but at the same time will allow my writing to blossom with each crafted paragraph.

Generating ideas and converting them into a river of words is the hardest part — you’ll have to practice for months on end if you want to produce something remarkable, but it will be worth it because I believe I’ll become a writer.

I’ll write on several different topics, but what especially quivers my spine is writing on mental health. I grew up around mental illness, and it certainly wasn’t fun. But it inspired me to help people. Not to cure them of course, since I don’t have the credentials, but to help lead people on to a path of recovery.

Writing on mental health has helped enable me to break free from some of my negative thinking. I don’t know where I’ll end up or how I’ll finish, but I know the route I want to take. I will continue to write, with the goal of publishing my work on websites, blogs, and eventually newspapers.

I will meet new people and ask them what I can do to advance my craft. I will eventually move out and earn a writing career. I will volunteer at libraries, and publishing offices, dedicating myself to learning more. I will express my thoughts and beliefs, regardless of who attempts to dictate how I should act or what I should write about.

I will not regurgitate information, but breathe out a humble opinion with each flick of my wrist. This is too big for a teenager to not only achieve, but envision. If I had more friends, siblings, and support networks, they would cushion me from potential failures and miseries. It is too massive, unconquerable, indefinable to contemplate doing.

But I won’t give up. What I hope is that when I write, a diagram intertwined with my own visions, thoughts, and beliefs will emerge, and I can capture it with each sense. I’ll visualize me standing, hearing myself chatting, tasting salty sweat from hours of exerting myself, and touching whatever is beside me, desperately trying to withhold from electrocuting euphoria.

But I can’t promise you I’ll write every day. There will be days when I need to withdraw, at least for a little while. Let’s come together. I am grateful and excited to embark on this mission with you.