Q: Have you always wanted to be a writer? When did you start writing?

 

A: No. I didn’t start out wanting to be a writer. My career choices ran all over the place. In the world of writers, I consider myself a freak of nature. I didn’t start writing at the age of four, and I didn’t grow up with a love for books (unless comic books count). Even today, if I had to vote on what I’d rather do right now, reading a book would follow watching a movie or playing a video game every single time. Still, I’m probably one of the biggest reading “nonreaders” you’ll ever find, but reading is a conscious decision for me, almost like working out and taking vitamins. I know how important it is, so I read at least a book per week (not including comic books, which I still love).

 

I discovered my love for writing after an assignment I did in a college course. The assignment involved re-writing the end of an assigned novel. (Believe it or not, during my entire twelve years of public schooling, I was never asked to do any creative, story-telling type writing.) After completing the college assignment, I contracted a nagging urge to write a short story of my own. That short story, believe it or not, became my first novel—Learnt, all because of a nagging urge to write. And I’m still feeding that urge. It’s really become a problem.