Mentee Author Statements (2010-2011)

Tatyana Alexander
My name is Tatyana Alexander; all my friends call me Taty. I go to a high school called Academy for Conservation and the Environment, but ACE sounds better. I am a sophomore in high school with only two more years to go. Brownsville, Brooklyn, is where I have lived my whole life so far. I consider myself a writer because I write about problems that trouble me that other people can relate to, and I think the most important part of writing is being able to write a piece that your audience can relate to. I haven’t won any writing awards, but I have won academic awards in math, reading and science. Recently, I won an award for being a critical thinker. Poetry is the genre that I am most comfortable writing because I can express my problems and my thoughts in similes and metaphors. My goal as a writer is not to over think my pieces and free my mind in writing and in life. I want to inspire young women like myself to not be afraid of who they are. They don’t have to mold themselves to fit in. I like to play basketball and babysit my little brothers as I watch them grow up. I have only been at Girls Write Now one year.

Lashanda Anakwah
My name is Lashanda Anakwah, and this is my first year at GWN. I’m a junior at the Marble Hill School for International Studies. I reside in the Bronx. I consider myself a writer because I like to express myself with words. Poetry is the genre with which I feel the most comfortable, but I write everything (well not playwriting). Some of my goals are become more confident in my work and more versatile with my skills. I love to read. My love of reading is what made me start writing. In the future, I hope to have a job that allows me to write. I haven’t been published yet, but one of my goals is to be published at least once before college.

Diamond Arriola
My name is Diamond Sade Arriola, and I am a B- average student at the School for Excellence. I was born at Our Lady of Mercy Hospital located in Mount Vernon but have spent all of my seventeen years in Parkchester in the Bronx. May 18th is my birthday, which makes me a Taurus and very stubborn. That would indeed be the reason as to why I have progressed in my writing. I am assertive towards what I want to write about and determined to strive for perfection. I put most of my writing skills into poetry. It has been therapeutic and bold due to the fact that my poetry’s being conveyed out of feelings. I am very happy to be joining Girls Write Now for my second year and/or my senior year, rather. This time in my life is very crucial. In the future I hope to be an aspiring journalist who can conquer many stories and release my thoughts to the world. I can grab onto the dream, and I will be determined not to let it slip away.

Mariah Teresa Aviles
My name is Mariah Teresa Aviles, but everybody calls me Riah. I reside in Gunhill in the Bronx, but I attend TYWLS in East Harlem as a sophomore. One of my favorite things to do is write. It has always been my passion since I was little because it was always an escape. I was never the best at expressing myself so writing is my best way of expression for me. I love writing spoken word pieces, poems, memoirs and journal entries; in my opinion, those are my strengths. My goal as a writer is to become more precise with my writing, getting details, getting deeper about specific topics, etc. In the future, my dream career is to be an author and illustrator of teen or young adult and Christian books. I love writing to have an audience of teens my age or older, like the girls I look up to in my life. Other hobbies I have are dancing, singing, reading, and just talking, hanging out. Besides playing instruments, that’s pretty much how I spend most of my time. This is my first year at GWN, and I can honestly say I am truly blessed to have been accepted. I come to this building every month and feel so lucky to have this opportunity. I’ve never been able to be a part of something as big as this; not many girls our age get this chance. I have learned so much in the past 5 months, and I just want to thank my mentor and the whole staff for making everything happen.

Brittany Barker
For the past 2 years, I’ve begun to see life as poetry, how revisiting these memories of life itself are almost staccato, just like poetry is. During my first year of high school, I struggle to find my own voice, particularly with writing. I joined an amazing organization named Girls Write Now my sophomore year of high school and things took off from there.

My passion for poetry grew from “okay” to “intense!”

I won a Silver Key Writing and Art Award from Scholastic, and I also came in second place in the Malcolm X poetry contest. In addition, I joined Urban Word NYC, a safe space for NY teen poets, where I competed with accomplished spoken word poets in the 2011 Knicks Poetry Slam preliminaries and semi-finals. I am one of 13 finalists. In December of 2010, I received news that I would be one of 10 students chosen for the Posse Scholarship to attend Dickinson College in the fall of 2011. I currently live in Harlem and am 17 years old. This is my third and final year in Girls Write Now. It is also my senior year of high school. I cannot wait until they call my name on stage to receive my high school diploma. I can hear it now, “Will Brittany Barker come and receive her high school diploma?!”

Evelyn Berrones
I’m Evelyn Berrones. I was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador and came to the Bronx, New York in 2005. In 2012 I’ll graduate from Hostos Lincoln Academy with an Advanced Regents Diploma and an Associates Degree from Hostos Community College. I’m passionate about writing and feel that it comes naturally to me so I write memoir, fiction and poetry. In 2011, I won a Gold Key Award from the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards for a memoir. My career aspirations are to become a lawyer to support my writing. In my free time I read mostly nonfiction and mysteries or go out with my friends. I’ve been in Girls Write Now since the beginning of my junior year (2009).

Michaela Burns
My name is Michaela Burns and I live in New York City. I have, as long as I can remember, wanted to write. At first, it was TV episodes for the Public Broadcasting System’s Arthur, an animated children’s show. Later, I often gave away poems as birthday gifts to my parents and other patient relatives. In high school I joined my school’s newspaper and writing clubs. I enjoyed all types of writing. An essay I wrote when I was twelve sums it up best.” My passion is writing. In writing I can put feelings and emotions into a piece to give it a voice. My favorite type of writing is creative writing. With this type of writing it’s fascinating that you create something that is yours and is fueled by your ideas and imagination. I get a good deal of pleasure seeing the story unfold.” As a senior in high school, I could probably write the sentiments in a more complex way. However, this simply written statement succinctly captures the way I feel about writing. I enjoy writing all different genres and hope to pursue a career in the subject.

Cindy Caban
My name is Cindy Caban. I am a sophomore at Millennium High School. I live in Williamsburg, the neighborhood that continues to change. I have Hispanic blood running through my veins and am very proud of it. I am lucky to have discovered that I am passionate about writing. I love to let myself go in writing and let words drip from my tongue. I love to write poems and fiction. I love to create an image in my mind and write all my thoughts down. It’s my way of expressing myself and learning about myself. As a writer my goals are to learn new techniques, be open-minded and be able to learn, improve and accept criticism. My goal is to take my writing career further in the future and write a novel. I want to be able to inspire other people by giving them hope and showing that if you work hard, you can make a difference in someone else’s life through your writing. Writing allows me to be myself. Besides writing, in my spare time I love to listen to music such as Radiohead and Nirvana. I love to wrap myself in movies, to let go of my reality. I also visit multiple art museums that give me inspiration about something to write. I just started Girls Write Now, and I am very excited to see what awaits me in the future. I love to spend time with my family. I am an aunt to my 2 year-old nephew who always makes me smile.

Olivia Carew
My name is Olivia Carew. I live in NYC and currently attend the James Baldwin School as a senior. I find myself stuffing my schedule with photography/journalism programs and many programs that deal with the activist that lives in my heart. Sometimes when things get crazy, I sit down and write poems that deal with things bigger than my own problems. I am into spoken word poetry but enjoy dabbling in personal essays, songs and pieces that argue my strong stances in life. I love to write because writing allows me to organize my thoughts. This is my first year at Girls Write Now, and I am happy that I participate in this program because its monthly sessions always inspire me, and with the mentor they have provided me, I am prepared to explore myself even deeper with my pen and paper.

Tammy Chan
My name is Tammy and no, it’s not short for anything and it doesn’t get any shorter than that. I reside in Forest Hills in Queens, but I commute to the Upper East Side for school at Talent Unlimited as a Senior. I’ll be attending the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University in the Fall. Ever since I was able to write, that’s what I’ve been doing. I owe all my success to the fact that I wrote like crazy. Just the ease of it, just having an ink flow and surface, I can write anywhere possible. I’ve never been much of a verbal speaker but writing helps me channel my thought flow. In the future, I don’t want a job, I want a career. I aspire to be a journalist. Though the industry itself is highly competitive and dying, I know I can push through and succeed. I love spending my time near the water, on piers, though I have to admit that I’m water-phobic. This is my second year at GWN and I feel blessed to have so many opportunities like winning a few Scholastic medals and keys and getting my article published – getting recognition in a field that I want to pursue in the future. Being a mentee at GWN makes me feel like I can accomplish anything and with the network at GWN, if I can put my mind to anything, I can do it. I have my mentor, Samantha Henig, a writer for the New Yorker (!!!) to thank – for being a role model, guiding me through the field, and most importantly giving me an image of what I aspire to be.

Becky Chao
My name is Becky Chao, and I’ve lived in New York City all my life. Right now I live in Brooklyn, and that’s where you’ll find me a lot of the time. I go to school in Manhattan, though, so chances are you might run into me there, too. I love writing; I think of it as painting a story with words. It’s therapeutic for me, sometimes, because it’s how I figure things out. Other times, I have a lot of fun with it and make up a little story. Writing reminds me of my other love: music. It’s intricate in the same way, in that it’s got many layers and you play with things, moving things around to compose a complete harmony. Yet, it doesn’t always have to be so well thought out—sometimes it’s okay to just improvise a little something. You’ll frequently find me with my earphones in, listening to music or at a concert or just chilling, having a good time with friends. This is my first year at Girls Write Now.

Monica Chin
My name is Monica Chin. I am fifteen years old and from New York City. I go to Baruch College Campus High School and am currently in 10th grade. I am half Korean and half Chinese, yet I speak Japanese and English. I have lived in Manhattan all my life. I consider myself a writer because that is my passion, besides art and science. I have never applied to any scholarships or awards besides this past December for the Scholastic Writing Award as part of GWN. I love storytelling and writing fiction. I have always wanted to write plays. My goals as a writer are to explore nonfiction genres like journalism and essay writing for the future and to improve my grammar and vocabulary. I want to become a novelist as well as a marine biologist. I like to read, watch TV, go on the internet and write fictional stories. This is my first year in Girls Write Now, and my most wonderful mentor is Elaine Stuart-Shah.

Gina DiFrisco
My name is Gina DiFrisco. I am in the tenth grade and fifteen years of age. I was born and raised in the Bronx and am currently attending the Urban Assembly School for Green Careers. I love to write fiction and love stories where I can put a little of myself into my main character. I recently entered a Scholastic competition but have not won any awards or scholarships. I am not published... yet. I am hoping to be a published writer. Before, I wanted to be a novelist. However, I am now trying to write a series of short stories instead. Reading fantasy fiction books is what I like to do in my free time, that or sleeping. I have been part of the Girls Write Now program for one year.

Sharline Dominguez
The name on my birth certificate reads Sharline Dominquez. Born in the beautiful island of the Dominican Republic, came to reside in Brooklyn, NYC, when I was only three years old, holding Papi’s hand in John F. Kennedy Airport that year, in 1997. Overly obsessed with detail and observing silently so it’s almost as if I am a wallflower, but not exactly. Softball/baseball enthusiast. Writing—I consider it my very own honor code, an ideology I follow because it keeps me sane. Sometimes I get completely lost in my thoughts, a lover of flowery writing and adjectives. Scholastic Awards Silver Key recipient. Highly fond of the piano and its delicacy, but I cannot play it. Black-curtained rooms encourage me to think outside of the box. Laying down on the grass is a pastime for me. SEO Scholar. Global Teens Participant: Thailand 2011. Living comfortably. Often described as “mature and intellectually engaged.” Favorite colors are purple and black. Eat more rice and beans and bread than I should. Critic of today’s hip hop and rap music because it just does not make any sense to me anymore. Working on my punctuality. Curious beyond belief so contradiction is my middle name. Tutor at Brooklyn College Academy. As for writing goals, I want to major in English when I get to college, unsure of where I want to go from there. Entranced by the city’s lights and dark alleyways, I come alive in the nighttime. First year with Girls Write Now. Working on scholarship applications right now. The beach is my only sanctuary and true believe in that you either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain. I am aware that the world changes every day and people fall in love, but for now, I must say, pro-graffiti. Please chill, guys. It’s an art form.

Anais Figueroa
My name is Anais Figueroa. I am 17 years old and have lived in Manhattan my entire life. I am a senior in high school and waiting to see which colleges I get accepted into. I love to express myself through my writing and use my stories as an outlet for me to do this. The best part about writing is getting the way I see the world out on paper. I am passionate about writing because of the books and TV shows that have inspired me in the past. I love to read, watch TV, hang out with my friends, and go to the movies. I’ve been with Girls Write Now for only a year and have learned a lot from this experience.

Jennifer Fuster
I’m currently a senior at Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School. I live in Manhattan but was raised in Orlando, Florida. I’ve been writing since middle school and find a joy in writing short stories and poems. Writing is something that comes naturally to me, same with drawing. My goal as a writer is to keep writing as a hobby but to one day get a career in the art industry because drawing is another one of my passions. This is my second and last year in Girls Write Now because I’m graduating this year!

Nathalie Gomez
My name is Nathalie Gomez. I was born in Rhode Island but raised in Queens, New York. My passion for writing is just about using your imagination to create something free and creative. I would like to be able to write novels and short stories that will be published so that my reader can see how there is no right or wrong way to a piece of writing. In my near future I want to become an English teacher/professor to teach people to be creative in writing either in poetry, playwriting, journalism, or my favorite, fantasy. Also, this is my first year at GWN.

Guadalupe Gracida
My name is Guadalupe Gracida. I was born and raised in Mexico City and immigrated to the United States at the age of 14. I go to Pan American International High School. I’m in 12th grade. I don’t know where I’m going next year. I live in Elmhurst, NY. I feel like a writer because I’m a writer. You just need a pen and paper to write all you want, all that you are feeling. Writing is a way to express yourself, to escape from reality. In your writing, you can be whatever you want. Your dreams come true. I like to write journalism. It’s a way that I can inform my community of what is happening in a concise and easy way that they can understand. I write for a community newspaper in an organization called Make the Road. The thing I like most is to read and learn new things. I love books from Paulo Kohelo. In this way my mind is always active and I never get bored. I want to grow as a writer, to have the power to give knowledge, to make people feel like I did, to make them connect with me in every word, every comma so that my audience can feel that they are not alone. They can know someone else feels like them. I haven’t won any scholarships, but with the knowledge I have gained, I’m good.

Priscilla Guo
I was born and raised where the skyscrapers get their growth spurt faster than me. They call it the Big Apple but I reside specifically in Forest Hills, Queens. I'm a freshman at the Brick Prison, formally known as Hunter College High School. This is my first year at Girls Write Now and I love it so far. It's where I can be a writer among other female writers. I find words hold so much power within them that they'd surprise you. They sit there on the page waiting to be seen and a writer molds those words into something magical. I like to be called a wielder of words. My favorite genres are poetry, short story, plays, and memoirs. My goal for the rest of my writing life is to find my voice, develop it, and use it. Meanwhile, I'll be watching more historical dramas. In a few moments, Henry VIII will behead Anne Boleyn, ouch.

Larissa Heron
I am a writer, born to the world of words. You can call me Larissa Heron since that is my full name. I attend School of the Future. “The future belongs to those who prepare for it.” – Emerson. I come from Manhattan, NY. I was born just a few blocks away from where I live. When I was 9, my family and I moved to Massachusetts. We came back to New York only last year. It was not the best time of my life, but I do not regret it. I enjoy writing poetry and short stories. I hope to publish one day a book of poetry. In terms of a career, I would like to be a poet and a physical therapist. This is my first year at GWN. I like yoga and reading fiction.

Ireen Hossain
My full name is Ireen Hossain, but I prefer to be called Anya Labelle. I prefer to be called Anya because I realized in the summer of 2010 that I knew nothing about myself, and everything I did know, I didn’t like. I didn’t like the person Ireen Hossasin become so, in a way, I gave “birth” to myself by creating Anya Labelle. It’s weird, as my friends say, but it’s important to me. Anyways I’m fifteen years old (going to be sixteen in April), and in 10th grade. I go to an all-girls school called the Young Women’s Leadership School of Astoria, located in Astoria, Queen. I like my school, but sometimes it’s a bit boring because I’ve been going there since I was in 6th grade. I live in Astoria by Kaufman Theater, and I like living there because I get an amazing view of the Manhattan skyline from my home. My family is from Bangladesh, but I prefer not to say I’m from there because to me, my country is a disgrace. I consider myself a writer because that’s all I can honestly do. I’m not really good at anything else, and writing makes me happy. I can write whatever I want, do whatever I want, feel whatever I want. That’s like the only thing I can control. I mostly like to write fiction and hope to one day become famous for my writing by becoming the next J.K. Rowling or Stephanie Meyers and letting my writing come alive in a movie, too. When I’m not writing, I like watching movies, hanging out with my friends, and just having fun. This is my first year at Girls Write Now, and I hope to continue this seriously wonderful opportunity.

Chandra Hughes
I am Chandra Hughes, a 10th grader from Millennium High School. I was born in China but was brought to America when I was six months old. I am currently fifteen and living in Manhattan, New York. I was brought up in an American society with a mix of Italian culture, which is why I can speak Italian. Due to the fact that I am adopted, I do not know anything about my culture, nor do I speak Chinese. I started loving writing when I was in 6th grade, and from then on I wrote during my free time. I find that writing helps me let go of my worries and create a story of my fantasy. I prefer to write fantasy and realistic fiction as well as poetry. My goal as a writer is to create a story in which, when people read it, their worries disappear. In my free time I love to read and watch anime, which inspire ideas for my stories. I also like to create fan clubs, which are for anime fans who dub in English the anime they love. Besides that, I love to audition for roles that fan clubbers hold. This is my first year in GWN, and I feel like this program helps me a lot as a writer. It pushes me towards my dream of writing a novel. My two other dreams are to create a movie, which is a part of writing, and to be an actor in a movie or a voice actor in an anime. These dreams help me feel excited about my future.

Kathryn Jagai
As a born and raised New Yorker, walking around the city is something I love to do. It’s a great way to get inspiration, especially in a place so full of different people and cultures. I often spend a lot of time writing in various parks around the city, typically while listening to music or reading. I try to gather inspirational material from the world around me, and my love of the different parts of New York shows up in my stories. I live in Brooklyn, and while the long commute to Hunter College High School can be a drag, I love watching the different people on the train. I guess I consider myself a writer because I’m always thinking up stories; the woman in the funny hat just broke up with her boyfriend, or the couple just getting on the Q train just found out their best friend is a Selkie. I’ve won a Scholastic gold medal for one of my fantasy stories. This will be my third year with Girls Write Now. I want to be a novelist in the future. While life as a junior may not leave a lot of room for writing, I try to make the most of my day and always leave a little time for it. I look forward to the day when I can return to Girls Write Now as a published mentor.

Yvetha Jean
I was born in Haiti in a small town where I learned to collaborate with my community. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, where I moved 4 years ago. I love shopping, dancing, singing, and modeling. I am also a soccer player. I go to International High School at Lafayette.

I get involved in community service because I love to see changes in the environment. I consider myself a generous person because I always manage to make others happy. I have been taught by my parents to always love my neighbor as myself, to have empathy towards other people. I also learned to love my enemies and be attentive when they call on me for help. When someone is in distress, I always feel their troubled heart and their supplication. Right now I feel like writing is one word that describes me personally; however; it was never on my priority list before the Girls Write Now program. My first year at Girls Write Now literally changed my life, the way I think and see things. With my writing I can finally say that I am strong enough to turn the world around. My writing is mostly poetry because it’s one of the genres which expresses me. As a writer, I would like to grow and be able to write in other forms and publish a book of my writing.

Massange Kamara
My name is Massange Kamara; I was born and raised in West Africa in Guinea. I moved to the United States with my mom and brother at the end of 2004 when I was 12. When I first came to the U.S., I knew no English. I am currently a senior at Bronx International High School where I write for my school newsletter. I consider myself a writer because writing is the most efficient way in which I could fully express myself the way I want to; writing is my voice. I’m passionate about poetry. I love writing poems because it allows me to express myself in many ways, and there are lots of things I can do with it. As a second year mentee at Girls Write Now, I’m starting to improve in other genres like short stories and fiction. My goal is not to live off writing in the future, but I intend to publish a piece that I feel would help many people who are going through what I have been through. I intend to give courage to those who can’t express themselves by speaking, but rather by writing.

Xiaoyu Li
I was born and raised in Guangdong, China, and I currently live in Brooklyn where I attend the International High School in Bensonhurst. Chinese is my first language, and I have been learning the new language, English, for three years. Even though I don’t speak perfect English. I was so fortunate to be selected into the professional writing institute Girls Write Now in the Class of 2011. I have met so many inspiring writers in many different field during my participation in the program. I strongly feel that my interest in writing was set-off in this awesome place.

Joanne Lin
My name is Joanne Lin, and I attend Millennium High School. I’m a sophomore, and I live in Manhattan. I consider myself a writer because it’s the only thing that I still find passion in. I think that I can express myself better through words. I like to write poetry and fiction. My goal as a writer is to expand my writing genres. This is my first year in GWN.

Octavia Lowrie
Hi, my name is Octavia Lowrie. I am a senior in School for Excellence. I was born and raised in the South Bronx. I consider myself a writer because when I write I set my emotions free. My emotions are sometimes my inspiration. I consider myself a writer because I feel this is my “God given purpose”. I have written plays in my church and even had them acted out. The genres I love to write are poetry and plays. I feel my poetry tells a story with a rhythm, and my plays allow my creativity to flow. My goal is to become a playwright and maybe even an actor. Although I love writing, I love acting. My career aspiration is to mainly become a writer. However if that doesn’t work as a plan, I want to work in health career. This is my second year attending GWN, and I think this is an excellent program for young women.

Alicia Maldonado
Hey my name is Alicia Elizabeth Maldonado. I have walked the streets of the Lower East Side my whole life. I keep myself surrounded by the friends and family that love me. Currently I am a junior in the NYC iSchool and getting ready to graduate in another year and half. I have been writing for as long as I learned how to press a pen against a paper and put words together. My writing helps me to make sense of all my emotions. I love writing because I can show others how I feel through my writing instead of through my voice. I feel that when I write I can get my point across and be completely honest. Though my writing I hope to achieve greatness. I want to write a book about insecurities and help teenage girls know that their not alone and that every girl young and old feel insecure at times but the key is to turn key is to turn our negatives into positives. In my future I hope I become a sports reporter but also open up a center for teen girls so they can come and be themselves without any judgment. Girls Write Now is like my second home. I look forward to that walk from the train station on 34th street to 37th street every month. As I get closer I think about the stories that I am going to create that day. I can not show how thankful I am to be in a place where I am able to feel how I feel and no one will judge you. I look forward to spending more time towards my writing their. My writing is my life and I hope that I will be able to make others feel better with it then just me. As Anais Nin says, "The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say."

Erika Marte
I was born in La Romana, Dominican Republic and came to live in the Bronx New York with not a word of English when I was two years old. Life is ironic because I am now completely in love with the English language and literature. I am a senior in the Bronx School for Law, Government, and Justice. I’m proud to say that I am a writer. The words written down on paper speak to me more than the ones I hear. I love to write from fiction, poetry, my memories, my feelings to my grocery list. I hope one day to walk into a bookstore and see my book with my name on it. I hope one day students could cite my name and have academic discussions about my writing. I’ve been in Girls Write Now for three years and each year have learned to love my writing even more.

Meghan McCullough
I am currently a senior at the Baccalaureate School for Global Education in Astoria, Queens. I live close by in Forest Hills, Queens. There was never a defining moment for me when I decided I was a writer; it is just something I became because I was always writing. Eventually, I began to recognize my own talent and ended up winning Silver Keys for poetry at the Scholastic Art and Writing Competition in 8th, 10th and 11th grades. Poetry is the genre of writing that comes most naturally to me, but I enjoy writing memoirs and short stories as well. I aspire to become a professional author when I grow up and am planning on majoring in English literature when I go to college. I love to read American literature as well as young adult novels. I also do yoga in my spare time because it gives me an opportunity to get in touch with myself, especially when my life can seem so busy. This is my fourth and final year with Girls Write Now, and I cherish my experiences as a part of this organization like no other.

Shyanne Melendez
I was born and raised in New York. It’s my city. I’m a junior now in high school, one of the younger ones. I’m turning 18 while in college. My school is in the financial district, Millennium High School. I’ve never won an award, just compliments. I like writing; it is a fun hobby. It keeps me sane. I could not get my feelings out in a better way. Talking gets played quickly. Writing has individuality. Poems are shorter ways, but they are over exaggerated, drama and feeling all in one. Fiction like fantasy is fun to get out of this world I don’t want to be a professional writer, but it’s fun to write. I like to read and play video games. Hanging with family and friends is great, too. This is my first year with Girls Write Now. It helps me grow, and my writing is stronger.

Deiona Danielle Monroe
Born and raised into a sticky substance named Harlem, NYC, my name is Deiona Danielle Monroe; most can’t pronounce my name so just call me Dee. I am a senior at the Beacon School, preparing myself for the complications of college. To face these complications, I write; I write poetry. I’m not always grammatically correct and don’t even know if “grammatically” is a word, but being a poet, I can make up these things, which I love. My writing hasn’t been entered for any scholarships—even though it needs to be—but I have received a Regional Gold Key and a National Silver Medal from the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards for my poetry. I am strictly a poet. Thought I find myself sometimes playing around with other subjects, poetry is only genre that knows the key to my heart. I want everyone to listen to my poetry and be happy that I want it to be listened to, not heard. I want to use my writing in my dream job as a lawyer of international relations and see that my words are actually helping someone. Being that this is my 2nd and probably last year at Girls Write Now, I want to go out with more than a bang.

Yvonne Ndiaye
My name is Yvonne Ndiaye. I am a 12th grader at Brooklyn International. I was born in the Bronx, but I grew up in Senegal, West Africa. I came back to the States in 2008. I write poetry. Writing is a passion; it heals me in many different ways. It helps me think of what I should do or not do. I haven’t won an award for writing yet, but I attend programs that not a lot of teenagers have access to so I consider myself a writer. An award doesn’t have to prove it. I’m hoping one day that I can put all my poetry together and publish it. I love reading books, which both inspire me and teach me how to write my own pieces. I like to go to the movies, but I don’t have time for it anymore because of schoolwork, my research, and after school programs. This is my second year in Girls Write Now. I feel like I have been here longer. Because of GWN, I am more confident in what I can do and want to do in the future.

Ariana Nicoletta
According to my high school transcript, I am Ariana Rose Judith Nicoletta. However, according to me, I am simply Ariana. I am a Staten Islander who makes a length commute to attend LaGuardia High School of the Performing Arts where I study drama. Drama is one of my first encouragements to start writing. As a child, I enjoyed reading and writing plays. To see written words be brought from a book to real life always delighted me. However, after seeing the tenth version of “Annie” by the time I was ten, I decided to try my own hand at writing. Little did I know I would fall in love with it. To be a writer means to have the ability to take a creative picture in your mind and evolve it into words that you place on paper. I feel that I have been able to do this through improving my word context and taming my pretty wild imagination. It is something I am passionate about, during my ups and downs. When I got my first award, I scribbled about it in my journal to relieve some of the bubbling excitement. When I lost my contest, I allowed tears to show while scribbling my feelings down on a tear-stained paper. My writing has been recognized in the past. I won a Silver Scholastic Writing Award for a personal memoir about my uncle(?). Though I have yet to win anything recently, I am praying for a good outcome for college scholarships. My favorite genres are fiction, fantasy and journalism. I am currently attempting to write a play for GWN and my fellow drama classmates. As a writer, I hope to hit on both drama and comedy: drama through portraying the hard events of life and comedy through endless parodies about everyday situations. Though I am undecided about my career, I want to find a writing internship, hopefully with SNL or a theatre. Besides writing, I love to act, read, play tennis, swim and practice piano. I have been with GWN for 2 years and this is my final year. I am happy to say that GWN has made a stronger writer and a stronger woman.

Marlyn Palomino
I am Marlyn Palomino, born in Miami, Florida, raised in Bogota, Colombia, and currently live in Queens, New York. I am a senior at the Flushing International High School. I came to the United States from Colombia about 5 years ago, living in one of the diverse neighborhoods of Queens, Astoria. I consider myself a writer because it is my passion, the only way I can let many of my feelings out without having someone to judge me by the way I think or express myself. Writing has taken such an important role in my life because every time I write I get inspired by something, anything. Writing can reach many hearts and thoughts throughout the world, and that’s what makes it a so powerful key in my life. I enjoy writing journalism, memoir, and recently started liking poetry after one of the workshops on poetry taught me so many techniques that have helped me develop and improve my writing. As a writer, I hope to continue going in the same path and having the same passion to write and be able to inspire so many people around the world. I hope to become a better writer and therefore help and motivate many to write. I hope to include writing in my career goals, even thought I haven’t yet chosen a career. I hope to include it in my future plans and always have it with me as a treasure. I like reading books that are based on true facts and that teach many lessons, probably from people’s real life experiences and their thoughts about life. I like photography, dancing, eating, riding my bicycle and swimming. All my hobbies help me to distract my mind from many things that are hard to overcome in my life. This is my first year at Girls Write Now.

ChanTareya Paredes
I was named ChanTareya Kristopher Alexis Paredes on April 26, 1994. It’s a name that creatively, and probably unintentionally at the time of my birth, describes my unique and sometimes completely abstract personality and outlook on life. Almost 3 years ago I moved to Brooklyn, though I refuse to be called a New Yorker. Though I was born on an air force base in Okinawa, Japan, I consider myself a Southern gal because I lived nine youthful years in Charlotte, North Carolina. Although my freshman year of high school was a fun and rebellious stage for me, I am grateful that I made the change of transferring to Millennium High School. I am currently a junior and beginning the rough path of the college process while also balancing the rigorous courseload that a college preparatory school has to offer. Even though each step has been a challenge, I pride myself for taking a spontaneous and overall optimistic outlook on life, and I try to bend the rules so that they work for me. I take the initiative to create a good life for myself, including dedicating myself to writing and creating my school’s first writing club. I always have different reasons behind the passion of my writing, but it always includes that fact that I have a natural born talent to manipulate words so that they innovatively express my point of view. Last year, I won a Silver Key Scholastic Award for a poem that I dedicated to my grandmother. I also receive confidence as the reward of daily compliments and support from family and friends. I love to write poetry, but writing in general has always brought me peace of mind. My goal as a writer is to improve. Nobody is perfect, and I pray that with my personal growth, the ability to further express myself through my writing also improves. I love to read, write, listen to music, and draw. Those four activities have brought me calmness during the storm and given me the ability to appreciate my life and the gifts and talents that God has given me. I hope that by being with Girls Write Now, since this is my first year, I will only further improve myself and my writing.

Emely Paulino
I am Emely Paulino. I was born and live in Queens, New York. Ever since I was in the third grade, my goal in life has been to become a writer. Throughout the years I have found niche in poetry and short fiction. Currently a sophomore at The Young Women’s Leadership School of Astoria, this is also my second year at Girls Write Now. Through Girls Write Now I am growing as a writer and working with others who share a passion for the same thing. During my first year with GWN I won a Gold Key from the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. By winning this award, I was introduced to many other writing opportunities that have helped me continue to write and interact with other writers. When I am not writing or observing things around me, I am taking pictures on my film camera or spending time with people who inspire me to write. Sometimes you will even find me up on stage improvising scenes with a group of friends.

Idamaris Perez
I’m proud to announce that this is my first year in Girls Write Now, and through this special program I’ve discovered how it feels to be in a writing community. I live in Washington Heights and attend an all-girls Catholic high school, St. Jean Baptiste. I consider myself a writer because I write to express both myself and how I view the world. At the end of junior high, I earned a Nick Scholarship from this special foundation/program called Nick and Friends based on a composition. To Be Continued...

Anna Poon
Anna Poon is currently a senior at Hunter College High School, and she can’t wait to graduate and finally experience the world as it comes to her. Brooklyn can’t hold her here forever. She considers herself a writer because she lives 50% of her life in an imaginary place and she loves it. Writing is what helps her do that. She considers herself a writer because she’s questioned herself about it so many times and always comes to the same conclusion and also because she has atrocious handwriting. She wants to write fantasy so that at night she can be a superhero dancing across the skies of New York City and maybe be an editor for her day job. For now, she’s happy to be a third-year mentee in the Girls Write Now program, and every so often plays the piano to soothe her soul.

Ashley Richmond
My name is Ashley E. Richmond, I’m a senior in high school. This is my second year as a mentee at Girls Write Now. I attend Dr. Susan S. Mckinney Secondary School For The Performing Arts as a vocal major. I like to write short stories, poems, and plays but I really enjoy writing novels for both the young and old. I plan to become a well-known writer.

Mitzi Sanchez
I’ve always considered myself a passionately curious person. I’m currently a senior at the Flushing International High School; I live in Jackson Heights, Queens, New York ever since I stepped a foot on this country which was five years and a couple of months ago. I am originally from Mexico but I’ve always been interesting in learning about other countries around the world. I like to think of myself as a young lucky lady; the experiences that I’ve been through somehow inspired me to put my feelings on paper. The people I’ve met around New York have helped and supported me through ups and downs. I believe that being a writer is a way of expressing my ideas without being judge, a way of being myself and create my own perfect world. I love Media Arts; filming and documenting people, diversity around NYC; it’s like telling people my life through a screen. One of my goals is to become a photojournalist and travel around the world. I mostly like to write about youth issues, memoirs, journalism, nonfiction, and sometimes fiction. I like to read when I’m on the train, I like to observe my surroundings, or take a picture and create a whole new story out of it. I became a member of GWN in 2010; therefore it is my first time participating with young women writers. It has been a great year so far.

Emily Sarita
My name is Emily Sarita. I have lived in different parts of Brooklyn and Queens, but I was born in Brooklyn. I’m a junior in high school, and I go to NYCiSChool, which is located in SoHo. I live in Williamsburg, where there is a park across the street from my apartment and nearly twenty minutes away from Delancey Street. I consider myself a writer because I feel that I am passionate when I write, and I always have ideas. I’m always reading or listening to music when suddenly a light bulb goes off in my head. I have to literally write down my idea or it won’t ever go away. I love to write fiction because it gives me room to express myself and create my own world. To me, fiction is my happy place where I can write something happy, sad or even adventurous. My goals as a writer are to be published someday, finish my stories, and write something personal about myself. What I like to do is read books, write, watch television, and spend time with my friends. I have not won any awards or any scholarships, but I would like to someday. I am in my second year at Girls Write Now, and it has been amazing.

Ilana Schiller-Weiss
Hi, my name is Ilana Schiller-Weiss. I am in 9th grade, and I go to the School of the Future. I live in Manhattan. I was born in Xiemen, China, and I came here when I was 4. I don’t really consider myself a writer, not because I don’t love doing it but because I don’t write that often. I think it would be a little dishonest to just say I’m a writer. I really like to write in fiction and poetry genres. My goals as a writer is to be exposed to more writing techniques. My career aspiration is to be an ecologist or an archaeologist. I really like to read, listen to music, and play guitar. This is my first year with Girls Write Now!

Syeda Showkat
I was born in Bangladesh and immigrated to New York when I was four. I’ve lived on the same block for 13 years, sang in the same classical Bengali music academy for 6, participated in Girls Write Now for 2, and have been writing for what seems like forever. My life revolves around my family, friends, school, music, poetry and, more recently, my college applications. Poetry is my passion. Writing is my life. I write for the literary, Spanish, history and art magazines at school. I’m the literary editor for the school newspaper and an art (photography) contributor for all these publications. I started Urban Mic, my high school’s first spoken word poetry club, an haven’t taken a break from my pen yet, which I don’t believe I can or want to do. I write because I don’t know how to stop. It’s just too important.

Ashley Simons
My name is Ashley Rose Simons. I was born and raised in Cambria Heights, Queens, New York. I am a freshman at St. Francis Prep in Fresh Meadows. I consider myself a writer because I always feel the need to jot something down or make a story out of something. I like to write fiction stories, and I just recently started to enjoy playwriting. My goal as a writer is to explore different genres. I plan on becoming a lawyer or a therapist. I like to cook, dance and read. This is my first year at Girls Write Now.

Cherish Smith
My name is Cherish Smith. I am a senior at BCAM High! I live in Far Rockaway, NY, the place no one visits until the summertime. I love to write because it’s almost as if it’s a means of teleporting except you only need a pen. Fiction is my favorite genre. It allows me to be someone else if I choose. I hope to publish a novel and maybe even make writing a career. This is my third and final year at GWN. It’s been one of my favorite activities/programs to date, which is great since I do everything from attending Broadway shows to drawing.

Joy Smith
I’m that girl you see on the subway staring intensely into the middle distance. My name is Joy Leticia Smith, I like it, it has a ring to it. I’m at that year in high school where it’s okay to go crazy because psychologists will just say, stress, college application. In case you don’t know, I’m in twelfth grade. Brooklyn Community Arts and Media High School is where you’ll find me, rushing to class and running out as soon I’m done being the Assistant Director for Grease the musical. I love writing because it’s mysterious. Anyone can spot an athlete, but a writer, never. Recently last year I won the Gold Key from Scholastic Art and Writing Award, where I still don’t believe it. While I stare into the middle distance I dream of musicals, fiction and publishing a novel with my identical twin sister in the mix of being an actress and medical professional. I’ve been with Girls Write Now for 3 years and I wish I could stay longer.

Shannon Talley
My name is Shannon Talley. I was born in Manhattan and raised in the Bronx. I am currently a senior in high school, and I occupy myself most of the time by applying to scholarships and writing tons of different essays that go with the scholarships. When I have a bit of free time I try to spend at least half of it with my friends. We go to the movies or just hang out when nobody has money. I go to Celia Cruz Bronx High School of Music. I sing, but no, I don’t want to be a singer when I’m older. It was a hobby of mine to sing in middle school, but for college I think it’s time to shift my life interests to writing. I love writing fiction. It interests me, my ability to create my own little world and control it as well. I haven’t entered any of pieces in contests or won scholarship awards although people always tell me that I should. I’ve been in Girls Write Now for two years, and it’s really helped me to get out of my writer’s block, especially since writing all of these college essays has temporarily burned out my creativity. I try writing every day to help inspire new ideas, and I drink lots of milk. Supposedly it simulates left-brain activity. [Laughs]     

Lucy Tan
My name is Lucy Tan, and I am currently a junior at Stuyvesant High School. I’ve lived in Brooklyn my whole life, and I consider myself a writer simply because I love to write. Writing is something that I can be proud of; it is also very therapeutic. I try to write as much as I can every day. After taking a poetry workshop class in my school, I was inspired to adopt poetry as my most comfortable medium of communication. I believe it doesn’t matter what one writes about or whether or not one’s writing makes sense; the beauty of words and the way they resonate in our minds and hearts is perhaps enough. Although writing is my favorite hobby, I also enjoy visual arts, and I aspire to major in biomedical engineering in college and hopefully become a scientist or doctor one day.

Aydoele Temple
My name is Ayodele Catherine Temple. I am a senior, and I attend the Urban Assembly School for Law and Justice. I live in Brooklyn, the Canarsie section of it. My family is from West Africa. I am very passionate and serious when it comes to my writing. I write my own songs, and I have performed them in December and they are recorded. I also performed in the Urban Word Teen Poetry Slam over the summer of 2010. I write poetry and monologues. My goal as a writer is to have an anthology of my own. I like to act and perform my writing. This is my second year with Girls Write Now.

Nehanda Thom
I never liked my first name, but I love what it means. I am Nehanda Ayoola Thom. In Swahili my name is “the beautiful one has arrived.” I attend high school in my neighborhood of Brownsville, Brooklyn. I hope to escape the troubles of my community but to essentially never leave New York City. Writing is the secretion and discharge of my thoughts. When pen hits paper, I’m relieved. I was once published on Kaplan Inc’s website. When I’m not writing, music supplements the iron I’ve lost on my rhetorical period. I hope to become a music critic at Rolling Stone magazine. I have only been with GWN for one year, but my hope is to maintain a lifelong connection. I just want to be successful.

Yolandra Vargas
My name is Yolandri Vargas. Ever since I was three or four years old I had a thirst to learn how to write. I had an urge to write about absolutely nothing. As I got older New York guided me to Girls Write Now, Urban Word, and other writing programs. For the past year and a half Girls Write Now has helped me feel and understand the poems I have written. As a poet my goals are to maintain individuality, write as much as I can, and perform with my heart. I was excited about what I wrote but felt a good scary feeling about putting my work out for the world. I never shared a piece of writing at my school until this year, my senior year at New Design high School. I consider myself a writer because I have the ability to say things and to express my feelings in different words with a different structure that can make you feel different ways. This is my second year as a mentee.

Quanasia Wheeler
My name is Quanasia Wheeler and in the 12th grade attending the Bronx School for Law, Government and Justice. I currently reside in Harlem. I consider myself a writer because I use writing to express my ideas and deal with my problems. I mostly write poetry but occasionally I like to “spice it up” and try new genres. As a writer, I would like to eventually write a book. I plan on becoming a psychiatrist so I’ll probably incorporate what I learn into my writing. In spare time I text, shop and listen to rock and pop music. I’ve been in Girls Write Now for four years.

Samantha Young
I am Samantha Young, and I’m a tenth grader at Baruch College Campus High School. I live on the Lower East Side with my parents and my cat, who happens to be just like me. I love writing because it’s a way to express my thoughts and feelings while also allowing me to free myself of them. I have won two awards for writing at a preparatory school: one for honorable mention and another for second place. I have not been published anywhere yet, but I plan on publishing some of my pieces in the future. I’m most fond of writing fiction stories, preferably fantasy. I have a large imagination so many of my fantasy pieces stem from dreams I’ve had or ideas that just pop up. In the future, I want to publish a novel that I’m working on currently. I plan on being a doctor, and my passion for writing has inspired me to possibly be a part-time writer. Besides writing during my free time, I play the piano, run my own website, and just hang out with my friends. This is my first year at Girls Write Now, and I’m so grateful to be able to have this experience.