I'll be honest, ever since I was a child I always knew that I wanted to write... and not just write, I wanted to be an author.

Books were then (and are still to this day) my true calling. How can I ever forget the elation I felt from getting lost on some wild adventure amongst the pages... staying up way past lights out just to get another chapter in. I couldn't get enough.

To me, books are magic.

Yes, to be an author was THE DREAM, and there came a time in my early twenties where I thought that maybe a dream was all it would ever be.

Fast forward a few years and I not only have two published stories, but I am also one-fifth of the team responsible for our town's FIRST EVER literary festival.

I honestly can't quite believe the surge my confidence has taken just by sharing my work with the world, and I mean in every aspect of my life. Although it is still a struggle, I am finally starting to believe in my achievements and learn not to make comparisons between myself and others.

As a young writer, I was always terrified to share ideas for both fears of rejection and fear that my stories would perhaps be stolen by another aspiring author. I realise how silly that is now.

The key is to share your ideas, share your stories, poems, characters, worlds. Make them known. The feedback is crucial to building the foundations of great writing and self-belief.

To anyone reading this that has ever just wanted to do something, say something, but has been held back by their insecurities, in the words of Shia LaBeouf - JUST DO IT!

Trust me, you'll feel so much better.