I was bullied by the kids in my neighborhood for a long time. That was when I was thirteen, and now I am seventeen. During that time, I felt the usual: alone, worthless, like there was something wrong with me. I retreated into a world of writing. I wrote an entire novel. In the end, I published Flower Picker, received local acclaim, and helped inspire many others. I took my negative experience and turned it into a positive one. My novel, Flower Picker, which I loosely based on a couple of my own life experiences, was only my first of the many novels I hope to publish.

- Olivia S.