You may often hear me say that a bad decision makes a good story.
Well, when I was a teenager, I made a REALLY bad decision.
Who knew that my bad decision making would lead me to prison?
Growing up, I was raised by a single mom who dated a few unsavory men. After living with the threat of sexual abuse throughout my teenage years, I fell into the arms of an older man. This man shower me with lavish gifts, luxury cars, diamonds, designer clothes and anything my heart desired.
At 18, I was naïve and had no clue that accepting these gifts from a drug dealer was wrong! I thought that as long as I personally did not break any laws, I was ok.
I had never, and still have NEVER saw drugs in my life other than on TV. I knew nothing about guilt by association. I was looking for an escape from my unsafe home.
I ended up pregnant at 18. My mom was disappointed so I moved out of her home. By the time I was six months pregnant, the home I shared with my unborn child's father was raided by the ATF and the Baltimore County Police.
Since there were no drugs in the home (but there was paraphernalia), again, I thought I was safe. When my baby was three months old and breastfeeding, I went to court. The judge said that she wanted to make an example out of me. Lucky me!
She sentenced me to FIVE years in prison!
I fainted!
I didn't hear anything after FIVE YEARS. All I knew is that I had left my baby with my aunt and cousin and he would be out of breast milk soon! To make a long story short, I woke up in handcuffs and shackles on a cold floor.
I got out on bail and was given 30 days to turn myself in. In that 30 days, I was supposed to wean my baby from the breast. Well, that didn't happen.
On the 29th day, I thought for sure I would lose my mind. I didn't know a person could cry so many tears.
I put my big girl panties on, kissed my baby goodbye and turned myself in.
Instantly, I missed my baby, my family, my friends and my freedom.
I was heartbroken.
I was at my lowest.
At the end of the day, all I had was a pen and a pad. I wrote the judge a letter. I like to say: I wrote my way out of prison.
There was nothing else the lawyers could do. They did all that they could.
It was up to me to own up to the bad decisions and be accountable for my actions. Ignorance of the law excuses no one.
Believe it or not, the judge decided to modify my sentence and released me after I served a little over a month!
That's when I realized the POWER of writing!
I decided to write a novel loosely based on my life. Writing what I know has allowed me to create my own lane. I chose to self publish because I recognize how authentic my story is and how my bad decision makes a really good story. My story matters.
Read all about this in Whirlwind, the sequel. But if you want all the tea, start with my first book, Dark Clouds.
Order here: https://www.crystallbass.com/shop