Acting : When did you first know that you truly wanted to be an Actor? What made you finally take the plunge into the start of your career (person, feeling, etc)? by Jennifer Lynn

Ever since I was little, I wanted to be on the big screen. I watched all of the Award shows religiously. I cried each and every time someone won that I truly believed deserved it. The speeches always stuck in my mind and I always let them motivate me, help me, and just encase me in pure happiness. I collected magazines with celebrities in them. I read and truly adored a lot of articles, and I put posters all over my walls...wishing so bad that I could be like that one day. I really wanted (and still do) to inspire people. I used to Act in sketches (similar to All That & SNL). My cousins and I used to spend weeks at a time on them. Filmed it, wrote up little Scripts, and really made sure we got a group of our extended family into it (for viewing parties). We also put on Christmas plays for years. I was always in the heart of all of these projects. I even used to help make fake snow for the plays haha. I always found so much happiness in these times. When we weren't filming, we were playing house or acting out other short stories. Our imaginations were always so intense. I was heavily bullied all through school. I got through it by watching movies, writing, and believing that I will someday be an Actress. Celebs, movies, and writing were my escapes. They were indeed my best friends, and something I still find severe comfort in. I've been writing since the Second Grade. About 6-7 years ago, I had some sort of mental block against writing. I hated that I had a gift in it because I kept hearing how it's not a great career choice and all that stuff we've writers had to fight through. I also got stumped on writing novels, it just wasn't for me...but I wasn't sure what was. So one night, I sat down and pulled out all of my notebooks full of ideas. I noticed a trend...everything felt like a movie. I saw the visuals so clearly each time I read another idea. I went online and googled, "how to write a movie..." 6-7 years later, I've learned so much about Screenwriting. I treated it is as a sort of home schooling. I had notebooks, textbooks, mentors, and wrote my butt off regularly. I feel very fulfilled and happy when it comes to Screenwriting, but I feel like I'm not totally going after my dream. I feel like something is missing. I feel like I'm not fully doing what I should or can be doing. I want to be an Actress. After all these years, I still want this more than anything. I do fully believe I have what it takes. I feel like I more or less just graduated college and it's time to find a job (auditions of course). =) More recently, I've come into my own and really feel ready. I'm at a crossroads, and instead of getting another crappy 9-5 job that I'll most likely hate...I'm deciding it's time to jump into the Acting world. What's your story? =)