My Road to Freedom

Hello, my name is J.R. Williams. I’m a woman, a writer, a mom, a wife, a friend, a coffee drinker, a technophile, and a Chicagoan. I was born and raised in the Ukrainian Village area. I went to the University of Illinois and studied English and Communications. I love words. I think, talk, and read a lot. Sometimes I design jewelry. Sometimes I create web pages. I believe that being simple is complicated. I believe that as writers it’s our obligation to bring to light our personal experiences; whatever that is for us. I believe in supporting others, dreaming big, and being positive. Welcome to my blog.

"You have to believe. You have to believe if your spouse or your parents or that annoying woman at church sneers at your abilities or the importance of children's and YA literature. Anyone who thinks that books for young readers and their creators are not two of the most significant forces in the universe is worthless scum on the excrement of worms and not worth any further consideration. Anyone who doesn't believe in you is worse. But there will be those people, and you have to sum up enough strength in yourself to continue anyway."

-Cynthia Leitich Smith

"I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance. The poet's, the writer's, duty is to write about these things. It is his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past."

-From William Faulkner