For many, writing can feel like just another class assignment, but for Kettle Run senior Alaina Shoman, it’s her creative outlet. Alaina began writing in seventh grade, motivated to find something she was passionate about. “I felt like everyone around me had something they were good at,” she says. “I wasn’t great at sports, singing, or dancing, so I picked up writing. I discovered I enjoyed it, and it was a way for me to express myself.”
This November, Alaina will see her work published in a collection by the American Library of Poetry. While describing the achievement, she says, “It felt unreal. I’ve always dreamt of being published, and now I finally feel like I’ve done something meaningful.”
To upcoming writers and poets, Alaina offers simple but important advice, “Don’t stop writing just because you think it might be embarrassing.”
Alaina admits that at first, she felt she wasn’t particularly talented compared to her friends. But as she explored writing, she realized she could excel at it. It wasn’t singing or dancing, but it was hers. Though her poetry often features themes about fruits, there’s much more depth to her work. Poetry has a unique power to convey who you are and what you feel in just a few words.
This is just a taste of the poem that is being published!
If you want to read more this poem is also on display at the open book!
