People Who Inspired Me To Be A Writer: Sharon M. Draper

When I was 11 years old I was given an assignment at school to read a book called Forged By Fire. I had no idea at the time that this book would have a major impact on my life and that it’s creator would become one of my biggest heroes of literature who inspired me to be a writer. Her name is Sharon M. Draper.

Sharon Mills Draper was born August 21, 1948 in Cleveland, Ohio. She was the oldest of three children born to Victor and Catherine. As a child, reading was Sharon’s greatest joy. At just 11 years old she read almost every children’s book at the local library and was eventually given a library card so she could start checking out adult books as well.

In her adulthood Sharon’s educational resume was very accomplished. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in English from Pepperdine University in Los, Angeles, California and her Master's of Arts degree in English from Miami University of Ohio in 1974. Draper would eventually become an educator and who was a local sensation for a challenging research paper that she would assign to her graduating students called the “Draper Paper”. When describing her journey to becoming both a teacher and an author, Sharon proclaims she always knew she would be a teacher and that the days of her mother reading to her as a child were the roots planted that would lead to her love for reading and eventually being an author.

My introduction to Sharon M. Draper’s work came in the form of her highly popular “Hazelwood” series of books taking place at the fictional Hazelwood highschool. When I was 11 years old my teacher assigned me and my classmates to read a book called Forged By Fire, which was actually the second book in the Hazelwood book series, but was the first one to which I was exposed. I had not heard previously heard of the book before, but when I started reading it I was instantly captivated by its premise.

Forged By Fire chronicles the story of a young boy named Gerald and the troubled childhood he endures with his loving but drug addicted mother Monique, his little sister Angel, and his abusive step-father Jordan. Gerald is also accompanied by his loving aunt Queen and his best friend Robbie. This book instantly became one of my favorite stories ever and I used to say I always wanted to see it turned into a major motion picture because every part of it resonated with me. I could relate to the abuse that Gerald faced as well as the environment of the inner city of which he grew up. I saw so much of my own life in this story that it almost felt like Sharon Draper was not only writing about me, but was writing to me. Forged By Fire was so good that me and my classmates asked my teacher could we all read the first book in the series titled Tears Of A Tiger. She reluctantly agreed and cautioned us at how emotional painful the book would be. As curious as I was, I found out the hard way that she was right.

Tears Of A Tiger is the first book in the Hazelwood series and it’s plot follows the story of a young boy named Andy, who is actually a good friend of the main character Gerald from Forged By Fire and he also attends the fictional Hazelwood high school with Gerald. Andy’s life is changed after he gets into a drunken car accident which claims the life of a friend he shared with Gerald and as a result he struggles with survivor’s guilt which sends him on a journey of a downward spiral that only Andy himself understands. After I read this book I was legitimately traumatized. I almost wished I hadn’t read it because of how emotionally effective it was, nevertheless it too is one of my favorite stories ever. The third and concluding entry in the series is called Darkness Before Dawn. I have yet to read it, but it is definitely on my to-read list because I have to finish the series.

Because of her Hazelwood series, Sharon Draper inspired me so much because her stories were a reflection of most of my actual life. When reading her stories I was also having a Black author tell me how much she understood me and perhaps articulated my feelings in a way of which I didn’t know how. Sharon also inspired me to talk about the sensitive topics that aren’t discussed enough in the Black community like mental health. Reading Tears Of A Tiger has been my biggest inspiration as a writer to want to tell stories that talk about mental health issues in the African American community because I don’t feel like these kind of issues are discussed enough.

Sharon M. Draper’s life and stories have been a driving force of motivation in my life since I was just 11 years old. She played a big role in teaching me how to tell stories and helped me discover which type of stories I wanted to tell. I am truly thankful to have her as one of my heroes of literature. Fir she is truly an amazing woman who has inspired me to be a writer.