I suppose fantasy has been my reality, right from the beginning -- from the very moment my parents named me.

My middle name comes from Middle Earth. It's Balin, in honor of this magnificently-bearded fellow, the kindest and wisest of the dwarves in The Hobbit.

When it came time to name our dog, we continued the theme.  His name is Pippin, an homage to this mischievous hobbit from The Lord of the Rings.

​“Write about what really interests you, whether it is real things or imaginary things, and nothing else.” —C.S. Lewis

My bookshelves are brimming with magic and myths, sigils and starships, trolls and time travel. ​​​There's even a Captain Kirk bobblehead incongruously nodding alongside a medieval drinking horn.​ I've been inspired by eminent authors like J.R.R. Tolkien, George R.R. Martin, Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, and Brandon Sanderson. So maybe it's no surprise that at a very young age I set off to write something of my own -- and that my first two books were set in fantasy realms. More recently, I've written several sci-fi short stories, which have been collected in a third book of mine.

​“I’m a writer. Therefore, I am not sane.” —Edgar Allen Poe

Maybe not. But I’m grateful that I was raised in an environment in which creativity and writing were encouraged. When I was young,  with the help of my father (a prolific author himself), I began to write little ten-page tales to entertain myself and my family. Soon, however, I began to aspire to something on a more epic scale.

​When I was 9 years old, I sat down to start crafting a fantasy novel. Filling three spiral notebooks, I wrote day after day for 18 months. The end result: Dragon Valley, a 200-page story about five baby dragons spawned in a lab and set free in a valley, their evolution, their descendants, and their battles over the course of one thousand years.

​Over the next two years, I wrote my second novel, Griffin Blade and the Bronze Finger, the 300-page tale of a kind-hearted thief with a profound destiny. Along with an unusual cast of companions, he embarks on a quest to retrieve a lost treasure more significant than he could ever imagine. I was proud to receive an INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award for this one.

​And I recently completed the next chapter of my writing career -- Continuum: Collected Stories of Space and Time. A compilation of science fiction and fantasy tales written over my first three years of high school, this book examines themes of hope and horror, fate and freedom, morality and mortality. Here's a link to a creepy book trailer. We're not in Kansas anymore.

I've done the occasional interview and book signing, which are always a thrill, but I most enjoy the emails from young readers who tell me that they were inspired to write after reading my stories.

​“Writer’s aren’t exactly people... They’re a whole bunch of people trying to be one person.”    —F. Scott Fitzgerald

Not only am I interested in creating characters on the page, but also on the stage. So actually, I’m one person trying to be a whole bunch of people. I've performed in several high school plays and a drama showcase, as well as fantastic musicals like Les Miserables, Beauty and the Beast, Shrek, and Spamalot!  At the end of my senior year, along with a composer classmate, I co-wrote an original musical called Going Up. It was a challenge, but one of the most rewarding things I have ever done.

“A writer, I think, is someone who pays attention to the world.”
​—Susan Sontag

Inspired by television shows like The West Wing and The Colbert Report, I have long been intrigued by politics and satire. As much as I like to delve into fantasy, I recognize the importance of following national and global events, forming educated opinions, and being outspoken when the need arises.

With a hero of mine, Rachel Maddow.

In fact, channeling the fearless satire of The Onion, I created a local version for my high school newspaper. It's a fictional news source dedicated to providing a taste of humor for the student body. I call it The Eggplant. See? Totally different food group.

Finally, after years of being a fan of improv comedy, I co-founded a troupe at my high school. We called ourselves Wince & Repeat and performed monthly shows featuring improv games and a few scripted sketches. Here's a clip of my brother and me in an improvised mini-musical about the Dynamic Duo!