TOMI ADEYEMI
When I first started writing, I wish I would’ve known that I wasn’t wasting my time. I started writing as soon as I learned how to read and it was one of my favorite hobbies. But every time I wrote a story or a random scene I thought I should be doing homework, or reading a book, or learning a “real” skill.
I wish I could go back in time and tell my 7-year-old self that every random piece of X-Men and Naruto Fan-Fiction I wrote (including that 300 page, single-spaced, recreation of the first 50 episodes of the series) was training for the future. That all those nights spent typing away would help me create the book I’m about to share with the world today. As writers we think we’re wasting time, but every time we daydream about our stories, every unfinished draft, every book we read, and every movie and television show we watch is us honing our craft. Recognize that early on and you’ll appreciate the journey much more!
Tomi Adeyemi is a Nigerian-American writer and creative writing coach based in San Diego, California. After graduating Harvard University with an honors degree in English literature, she received a fellowship that allowed her to study West African mythology and culture in Salvador, Brazil. When she’s not working on her novels or watching Scandal, she can be found blogging and teaching creative writing to her 4,500 subscribers at tomiadeyemi.com. Her website has been named one of the 101 best websites for writers by Writer’s Digest.
Her debut West African YA Fantasy novel is CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE (Holt Books for Young Readers/Macmillan). The CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE movie is in development at Fox 2000/Temple Hill Productions with Karen Rosenfelt and Wyck Godfrey (Twilight, Maze Runner, The Fault In Our Stars) producing it.
