So, this is who I am. . .

Well, I thought it was about time I actually wrote something here. I'm always setting up websites and blogs and not writing in them. I think I'll start off with a little bit about me, since I'm procrastinating anyway. . .

My name is Crystalee and I am a 23-year-old native of Central Pennsylvania. I am currently living, attending school, and not working (long story) in Pittsburgh, PA. I am in my second semester as an MFA in Creative Writing student with a poetry emphasis at Chatham College. Looking back, I always knew that this is where I was going to end up. Maybe not in Pittsburgh, but definitely going to school to write. And I worked my butt off and went against my parents' well-meaning but bad advice to get here. Why? Because I love to write. I have been writing for as long as I can remember and reading even longer. I love the fact that I now live in an environment that encourages me and even requires me to write something new every day. The people here are just as passionate as I am about writing and, for the most part, welcome me into their worlds and allow me to learn from their work.

Poetry was my first love. My poetry tends to be free verse, personal, and unsensored. I am also currently working on my first Young Adult fantasy novel called Ice Girl. My horizons have expanded greatly from my time in the MFA program. I now have experience in writing for children and travel writing, two disciplines I had never considered before.

My first REAL romantic love is my boyfriend Mark Bradley. He's a poet and fantasy writer too, and we love to bounce ideas off each other and help each other with our projects. He's the one who pushes me to keep working on Ice Girl and I can always count on him to give me a confidence boost when I am in a slump. You'll hear more about Mark in this blog, I'm sure. I'll try to keep it writing related though. ;-)

That's me in a nutshell: writer, poet, professional student, lover of life, girlfriend and dreamer. Welcome to my world.