 Story of a Writer is the honest story of my journey from a very young and inexperienced writer to the writer I am today, with comments from my present perspective on what did--and what didn't--work so well in my writing journey.
June 13, 1999 [10 years old] I’m crazy over Redwall. I’m listening to it on tape and I just think it is the GREATEST! I’m finished writing the Storm Foe. Now I’m starting Enemy of Beauty. June 30, 1999 I finished reading the book Martin the Warrior, that I started yesterday, which is like 2 inches thick!
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 I've been struggling to continue with my story, Beyond the Void, recently. Partly, that's because my brother has been in the hospital with a ruptured appendix, so normal life is currently forsaken. Partly, that's because I was having a hard time wrapping my mind around this particular story.
After reading it aloud to my brother and one of my sisters, my sister commented, "It's one of those weird, fascinating fantasy stories that reminds me of George MacDonald's style." My brain jolted. Oh! That was it. That was why I couldn't write the story the way I wanted to. I was categorizing it as epic fantasy (think Tolkien), but the story simply didn't fit. It wasn't fantasy; it was a fairytale for grown-ups.  It was not my plan to spend time in bed instead of writing.
But it’s my intention to accept the new plan.  “Don’t look at the water!” Richard screamed, snatching Margaret away from the edge of the boardwalk. Her skin crawled with cold sweat. He pushed her forward. Her feet slipped on the slime that dribbled at the edges of the warping wooden planks of the boardwalk, which receded into the twilight mist like a road that led to the edge of the world.
“Are we almost there?” Elizabeth gasped, hugging herself, almost incoherent. “Please tell me we’re almost there.”  Story of a Writer tells tales from my early days of writing, adding comments from my current perspective.
March 26, 1999 [10 years old] I’m calling this week the Monster Stage, because I remembered my “promise” to my friends Keith and Josh to make some of my own weird creatures with battle scenes and a story. My story is about 3 boys: Henry, Paul, and Tim. Henry and Paul are hypnotized into being on the bad guys’ side. When Tim refuses to be on their side, he gets rescued after being put in jail. You’ll have to read it to understand. I know I do not explain things clearly, but I bet my sister Keren would understand.
 I've been reading The Maze Runner recently, and, although I am really enjoying this action-packed, suspenseful story, I am also reminded that a story is best told when the author shows, rather than explains, the thoughts of the character.
Let me show what I mean, using a passage from The Maze Runner:
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