Introduction

Before you ask, my name has no particular ethnic significance. I’m not some exotic foreign woman full of spy-ish mystery. I am certainly not Borat's sister. My brother Barrett always joked that my parents just misspelled Natalie into Natalia, and the resulting confusion has been the basis of my coming of age. Some people know me as Natalie, including my family. Those that have met me since high school call me Natalia, and some select few, the closest and dearest, know me as Natty or Nat. The point, you wonder? This vagueness, this ability to be slightly different depending on the person that I am with, gave me a shape shifting ability that allows me to flow from one situation to the next. As a writer, I am grounded as to who I am and what is true to me through the written work I do, regardless of what I say or do in my life. It is usually highly personal, and often brutal and harsh, which most people expect from me. But sometimes its insightful, tender, and gentle, which is surprising. Enjoy the reading, let me know what I can change and tweak and throw out. Even add in some stuff if you'd like.