My name is James Earl, named after my grandfather James Earl born and raised in Willits California by Jeff and Joyce. This is my story.

My grandmother’s husband bob had just passed away. My grandmother not wanting to be alone in her rather large house asked us to move in with her. An upgrade in space to every body but me. I managed to convince my parents to get me a computer and Internet during this time. It was a birthday/Christmas present for high school. Having unlimited access to the internet brought me into a seclusion of sorts. All I did was browse the web and watch anime. Not very life altering but it will have an affect later.

English third period with Freddy is where the real stuff started to work itself out. Freddy was somebody that I could look up to in a way I guess just a great fun to be with. After completely not doing this exact assignment earl in my freshman year and a grueling grammar chapter, Freddy tasked us with completing a short story. He put us in pairs my partner was Justin a slacker more so than me at the time. But that’s not important. What is important is what he wrote “Jimmy, we have a great Idea of their powers but we don’t know what they look like, try to be more descriptive next time” I still carry that with me today as advice.

First semester of my freshman year grew to an end as Christmas rolled around. I found some interesting things online at the time. One site in particular gave me a push. The site was called Deviantart.com a community of artists that post works of art and comment on it. I at the time was merely a gallery viewer with the screen name Wolfvahn. It wasn’t the site so much that set me on my path but rather the people one such person was called E-vay. She drew Naruto fan art and was quite good at it, I was very into Naruto at the time and I still am. At the time I had a crush on E-vay, I know pathetic we talked a few times, I didn’t even know where she lived or what she looked like. But this isn’t about my “love life”. One day when I was browsing E-vay’s page I noticed a comment by somebody with a link on it saying “Hey check out my fan fiction.” and her reply was “Wow that was cool.” fan fiction? I asked myself. I could do that.

For the whole two weeks of Christmas vacation I wrote. It was unlike anything I’ve every felt! Using characters from the Naruto series I crafted a tale that was 42 pages long on word document 10 point font Times New roman single spaced. It was riddled with errors of all sorts grammar, spelling and loop holes all across the board. I keep an unaltered copy on my computer and a fixed up one that spans 120 pages 12 point font double spaced. I never finished it but just looking at it tends to ignite my writers spark. Turns out my reason for writing was to impress some girl I didn’t even know, yet was apparently heads over heels for.

My memory for the rest of the year is a big blur to me really the only thing I remember is when my parents where shocked that I didn’t fail English, again. During the summer my father Jeff high school football coach, said he would like me to play football this year, couldn’t last year because of the F in English. At the time I wasn’t quite out of my shell and was a bit reluctant, however I eventually manned up and joined. Right in time for hell weak, needless to say I was overjoyed running two miles each day plus gnarly circuits left me breathless and soar. It wasn’t all bad though I got to break out of my shell, get fit and learn more about my fellow class mates, that and work out some anger issues I didn’t know I had. I met Chico (Josh) during football and I became friends with him after I got over his loudness. He was kind of in between a mentor and a friend, Yea that sounds about right.

Back to the internet, Once again on Deviantart.com. I met this awesome girl that called herself D for short I found her one E-vay’s page, I still had a cyber crush on her. She was one of E-vay’s best friends in real life, but I found that out later. Anyways D was more of a friend than many of my real life friends simply because all we did was chat, about school, crazy things we’ve done and so forth. I wouldn’t put mention her if she didn’t have an affect on my life. Her along with Ms. Short where the only females in my life that I could talk to.

With all these new friends and the help of Freddy I began to find a reason to actually smile. Before it was just plastered on no real emotion attached to my smile. It just persisted day after day. I found a reason to actually smile a real smile, I still smile 90% of the and when people ask I still say “Because I have no reason to be sad” but now I actually mean to smile.

Spring of my sophomore year was eventful for me. I had a crazy writing spurt about this time when Freddy gave us the creative writing assignment. I fell into a writing spell four different stories each 20 page’s long prepped and ready for school. Only one could make the cut and would be slimmed down to 13 pages. I choose what I called at the time “Tale of Two Trains” I had some rather unique elements to it that I didn’t get to use because of the length I had to slice it. Something that still bugs me today.

It was around this time that I learned that it’s the writers job to please the reader not the other way around simply saying “Its just my style.” is a tiring excuse. I learnt this after posting a Naruto fan fiction on Fanfiction.net. A great site for would be writers like me. I became semi obsessed with writing and reading fan fiction. To the point I stopped reading books! Thankfully Freddy let me use some fan fiction that I read as reading credit so I passed English once again.

Right before school started and football season kicked off. My best friend Joey told me to read this book it was called “Homeland”. R.A Salvatore was the author, he became my idol of sorts and his character Drizzt was in my eyes perfect. The whole thing sent me into a spiral of reading and writing that was just awesome, much of the time was spent creating characters many where scrapped but a few where saved.

The 2008 football training was rough and not at all fun for me. This year it was a negative experience from the start, I learnt things about my classmates that changed my views on them, many for the worst. Before the third game I got a concussion and was done.

The school year was very positive. I once again had Ms. Short as one of my classes. Ms. Silva-Brown was my U.S history teacher that was a pleasure. Mr. Smith was my algebra II teacher. Ms. Kidwell over saw my animation class. Art with Ms. Bakewell. And finally Ms. Hult my new English teacher perhaps one of my best English experiences, though I’ve only had two so far that could count as positive.

6th period English was off to a shaky start with me and Ms. Hult for some reason, with Ms. Shorts help and my Mother’s divine intervention the problem was solved quickly allowing me to enjoy her class even more. During her class I began to get organized bit by bit, until now I have everything in folders color coordinated.

My next peace of literature was also made reality when the sci-fi story assignment was given. Once again I had to many Ideas to make real so I went with the one that could be done in the time frame allotted. It was called “Death Clock” only about two and a half pages in length.

Carpe deim or seize the day. Those words from the movie Ms. Hult showed us “The Dead Poet Society” still ring in my head about twice a day. I’m not to sure what it is to seize the day but that doesn’t stop me from living life to the fullest each and every day.

About February I started playing this game called “Star Ocean Last Hope”. The game itself didn’t have any real affect on me it was fun yea but the night that I beat it, about 4:30 Sunday morning. I laid in bed thinking about things. The only thing I remember from that night where three goals I set for myself; One: to write and publish a book Two: to affect a generation positively Three: to see the world. Those are still my goals today.

Anthony, he sat next to me during the last quarter of English and I worked with him during the poetry assignment, who’d figure we both like the romantics? I was rather Envious of Anthony he was smart, good looking and college bound unlike me. After talking with him a great deal I realized that I needed to get my act together should I ever want to go to college. I don’t think he remembers my name but it will be a while before I forget his.

The final weeks of the school year were the cause of much change in my view on my future. Ms. Hult gave us an assignment for finding your future career at first I wanted to be a writer the only feasible thing that I enjoy that I could make a living off of, boy was I wrong. Being a writer was almost impossible, let alone to make a living as one. So a stroke of brilliance came from Ms. Short who suggested that I become a teacher of the English arts. At first I was rather against the Idea but I not only warmed up to it but flung myself into the idea.

My name is James Earl. I have two big brothers in my life neither share blood or name. I have three females that I can talk to openly. I have three goals that I must accomplish. I have a dream of going to Saint Johns Collage. And I want to be an English teacher. To reach these goals ambitions and dreams I’ll forge my own path.