When I was around 10 years old, my mom gifted me a small and simple do-it-yourself cross-stitch set. It was about 150 stitches and was a picture of a cat playing with a ball of yarn. I worked on it very slowly and very carefully, and I absolutely loved seeing this little picture of a kitty come together. I made that! By myself! And then at the very end, I realized I had messed up the orientation of a row, and the whole thing was unsalvageable. I was absolutely devastated. Since then I've picked up dozens of sets, and even tried making patterns of my own. I never let my first project deter me from wanting to feel that joy I felt making something with my own hands. Something pretty, something I could hang on my wall, something I could feel proud of. There have been years at a time where I don’t touch my cross-stitching kits, either because I’ve become too busy or I just lost the passion for it. But every time I eventually come back around, and I’m reminded of why I stuck with the hobby in the first place. Working on these projects helps me feel connected to my family, as well. My mom used to cross-stitch, and so did one of my aunts as well as my grandma, and my great-grandma. I can bring up a project I’m working on and they’ll all know exactly how much work went into some of the pieces I’ve done. It helps me feel closer to my family, and I’m very grateful to my mom for getting me started on the hobby all those years ago. When I start to feel stressed or overwhelmed from classes, I can always pull out the next project I’m excited to work on to relax and remind myself why I love creating things as much as I do. Since that first project, I’ve gone on to begin my largest one yet; a 15,000 stitch-count piece that’s proving to me the most complex one I’ve ever done, both in pure scale as well as technique. As I progress, I like to think back to that younger me, so excited about a tiny kitty with its tiny ball of yarn, and I’m so proud of myself for continuing this hobby and being able to watch myself grow as I continue. I hope to be able to make even more complex and beautiful projects as the years go on.

Being outed as bisexual to my family was not how I intended to start the path towards helping my family understand and accept my LGBTQ+ identity. Over the years afterward, it has been increasingly difficult to feel accepted, even being asked to remove a bisexual flag bracelet from a personal wish list because it wasn't "family appropriate". It's been an uphill struggle, especially with fewer and fewer chances for me to interact with other LGBTQ+ people outside of the home. The first time I felt truly loved with my identity included was at the first LGBTQ+ event I attended during community college. Being around other LGBTQ+ people who were immediately willing to support me helped me realize for the first time that I could feel loved and appreciated, and it helped me begin to extend that love to myself in my everyday life. True self-love requires repetition and sincerity, and over the years I've been working hard to maintain that connection to myself and my identity. Being at that event also made me realize something crucial to my own personal journey; that being seen and having that representation was worth so much more than I ever thought it could be. Having that connection and having that instant unconditional support was something I didn't realize I needed until I got it, and I want to help provide that for other LGBTQ+ youth who may be struggling with the same things I was. As someone in the creative field, I'm hoping that being open about my identity can help others feel seen. My work centers around LGBTQ+ individuals and themes of family and love, and by making this content I hope to bring that feeling of love to those who see my work and connect with it. Being able to be that light for others that I myself needed is one of the biggest priorities for my work, and I hope as I continue down this path I'll be able to bring more joy to those who desperately need it.

When it comes to different forms of art, I like to consider myself a jack of all trades. Music, illustration, writing, animation, character design, game design, even performance. You name it, I've usually done it. But the one thing that's stuck with me through the years is comics. I've always had an interest in doing animation storyboards someday, and comics was my way of exploring that. I first started playing with the idea of making comics about 5 years ago, and once I found a format that worked for me, there was no stopping what I would do. Today, after almost 4 years of progress, I now have over 300 pages created and released for my current graphic novel project: The Villain School. I've always had a heart for stories, and this is the first one I took the time to develop and create and I'm so incredibly happy that I did. I've poured my heart and soul into this story and the small community I've managed to create has given it right back. I've put in hours of work every week, scripting, drawing, formatting, and posting it on a constant and consistent schedule. I've learned a lot about my process, how to manage my time, and how to promote my work. I even submitted the comic for a grant that would allow me to publish it as a physical book, but unfortunately, the grant and subsequent art show was canceled due to Covid. In the process, however, I learned how to professionally format my pages and some of the details needed to publish them. The comic is currently 6 chapters long, with the planned Book 1 containing chapters 1-5. The story is far from over, with a planned total of 40 chapters plus a short story. I'm working very hard every day to make sure I can provide the best content possible for people who have dedicated their time to read my stories, and I hope that I can continue to learn and grow as an artist and writer. The Villain School may be my first large-scale project, but it definitely won't be the last. I have concepts planned for dozens of stories, ranging in all different types of artistic mediums. From animation to games, to graphic novels, to short stories, I always have a plan for the future of my artistic career. Unfortunately, finances have made quite a roadblock. I'm currently attending school at the Pacific Northwest College of Art, and I'm learning so much during my time here. However, due to economic restrictions due to Covid, the school has had to increase their tuition. I was already having a harder time than I anticipated with being able to afford to continue my studies, and this is just another layer on top of that. The amount of time I can spend dedicated to making my content was already finished when I first started attending school, although I had managed to find a reliable and healthy schedule. Now, most of my free time is spent looking for scholarships and applying for jobs, both of which have proven to be unsuccessful in providing me with the assistance I would need to continue my studies. With the switch to online schooling, teachers have now also added to their workloads with the presumption that students would no longer have issues with longer work hours now that they're doing so from home. This has also put a damper on things, and restricting my abilities to find stable sources of income. I have high hopes for my artistic future, and I want more than anything to be able to continue providing people with stories that will become close to their hearts. Despite everything, I will continue to work hard every day to do my best for my career as an artist and storyteller.