Writing and literature have been many things to me throughout my life: shelter, escape, education, community, connection to Spirit, a way to self-know and self-care. As a child I was a bookworm, and after discovering the magic of creative writing in the third grade (I could create whole worlds), I’ve been writing and workshopping ever since.

I think often of something the writer Yiyun Li once said, “I am aware that, every time I have a conversation with a book, I benefit from someone’s decision against silence.” Whether or not it’s a book you have in hand, writing is power; it’s a deeply human way to offer ideas, speak the truth, communicate our values, and share what we wonder about, envision, and hold sacred. And with creative writing—it’s one of the surest ways I know how to tap into freedom.