Join Me On This Journey

“What are you doing?” my friend asked me.

“I’m writing a blog,” I replied with my bushy eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Technically I was supposed to be doing Spanish homework at the moment. And... I was not.

My friend gave me a glance of both unbelief and awe at the response I had given. "Writing a blog?"

“Well, it’s my first one,” I explained with a hint of uncertainty in my voice.

She gave me a knowing nod, filled with a hint of curiosity. “So how’s it coming along?”

My mouth upturned to a nervous grin. I turned my computer screen to her, and let her read through the sentences. It is my first blog, and it reads like this;

Hello, reader! My name is Noa Allen. I’m the girl you see walking down the street with her hair frizzing out of its ponytail without the least bit of control. I’m the girl you might overlook because she is so quiet and taken to herself. Well.. until you mention Doctor Who, Ninjago, science, or something of the like. Then it’s hard to keep my mouth shut. You see, I’m the reserved, introverted girl who sits by herself up at her desk with the computer in her lap typing up the next story to tell. And you know what? That’s just how I like it.

Writing is such a relaxing way to blow off steam and spark your creativity at the same time. It is a world of adventure when your mind thrusts itself into the unknown of imagination. Of course, I do have a purpose, a reason, to why I write, other than the joy of being by myself in my cozy little corner sometimes in my pajamas. It all started several years ago in 2013 after my dad passed away. I was seven and his death hit me quite hard. I cried and screamed and was in all out misery. According to my mom, I grabbed her by the collar and yelled, “You have to find me a new Dad!”. That was, at least, what my mom said I did. I don’t remember any of it now. I just remember drawing and writing. Soon, with mom’s aid and encouragement, I wrote, illustrated, and published my first book (at age seven). It is titled Huey and His Brother Learn Tae Kwon Do, which was inspired by a story my sister did when she was little. Then two years later I wrote another book; Peter Learns to Swim. Mom and I even got to promote the book a few times at local events and fairs!

But, wrapped up in school work, growing up, and just life in general, I stopped writing for a while. My books stayed stiff in the garage, waiting for me to take them out and share them with the world again.

I became interested in writing again in 2021 when I began experimenting in crafting chapters or bits of scripts. Of course, the first few drafts were scrapped completely as I found I really didn’t have a good plot nor theme to really make an actual story. The purpose just wasn't there. I wanted to write, I just didn't know how or why. It wasn’t until I discovered my real motivation; my real reason for writing my books, that I kept on writing … with a passion. I had gotten to the point in my maturity where I saw the world as it really is – fragile and wounded, not as the fairy tale I once viewed as a child. I saw areas in each of my family members' and friends’ lives that were surrounded by internal conflict and external struggles.The pain of seeing them go through financial hardships, ex-boyfriends, religious confrontations and more, made me feel sad, but outside of making them homemade gifts, I didn't know how to help them feel any better. 

Then, in the summer of 2022, I went to a week-long camp and met a few teens there who had bunked with me in the cabin. There was one campmate there whose sadness really moved me. She was not very friendly, but I got her number because that was the right thing to do. She was depressed, and was overall in a very, very bad place mentally. I saw that, and I hoped that I could help make her life better. I just didn't know how. It was a few months later when she passed away by suicide that I felt the need to really help others see life in a positive light. It connected inside me how I could share good with the world: helping others was my motivation, writing was my passion. My purpose, I decided, was to continue writing books with good morals and lessons in order that through those books good, encouraging messages could be heard. That way, I could help people just like my family, friends, and my farewell acquaintance, so they could experience the joys in life that I experience, and maybe learn something from that joy in making their lives better.

As of this post, I am currently in the process of illustrating two more children’s books that I wrote when I was nine, and am in the beginnings of writing young adult spy novels. I hope that through these literary works, and many others I have brewing in the back of my mind, people will see themselves and each other in the characters of the stories, and by doing that, I can make a change in their lives and in this world. 

I will continue to write as long as I live, so that my heart, and the hearts of others will be blessed with the good of childhood love, empathy, trust in God, reading, and adventure. I hope my books will do the same for you, and make a change in your life as well, no matter how old or young you are.

So here I am; writing my first blog. It’s exciting, it’s nerve wracking; but it’s the next step. Through these blogs I aim to reach YOU, dear reader, in hopes of becoming a friend, an ally, a fellow human that you wish to include in your world. There will be a variety of things to blog about and share with you; stories, discoveries, reviews on other people’s books, awesome quotes, inspiration, writing advice from my personal experiences… Who knows what a blog from an imaginative mind might bring? Will you join me on this journey? I sure hope so.

And of course, I’d love your advice – I really would – for this journey I’m on is uncharted, new, and scary, and I don't want to go on it alone. Tell me; what would you like to see me write about in my blogs, or even my children's books and novels. What would you like to know or learn? Send me a message and let me know. I would greatly appreciate hearing from you! I hope we can walk through this journey together. May God’s light shine upon you.

~Noa Allen