by L.C.

Created on: July 29, 2009

Did I have a clue what I was getting myself into when I switched on the television and came across Pokemon on a Saturday morning long ago? Probably not. My brother and I sat there, immersed in some sort of battle between a yellow, electric mouse and a white cat, and we soon fell in love. This was the beginning of something beautiful. As I acquired Pokemon movies, books, dolls, games and clothing, I soon stumbled upon Digimon, Yu-Gi-Oh and Beyblade. My addiction was especially spurred by Beyblade, episodes of which I would record at home and watch dozens of times afterwards. By age twelve I was an anime geek, and I'm proud to admit it.

If Pokemon was the beginning of my anime obsession, fanfiction was the climax. Again purely by chance, a friend and I came across fanfiction.net, back when the site was just starting and there were only a few hundred stories in the Pokemon category. I began writing Beyblade fanfiction with my friends, and I was an adamant fan girl shipper of Kai/Max. I still support them today, and I also still write fanfiction about that pairing. My yaoi obsession only furthered my addiction to anime.

I began to learn Japanese, and this opened plenty of new doors for me: Loveless, Prince of Tennis, Bleach, Death Note, Naruto, Fruits Basket and Gravitation, all in their original language. My shelves are overflowing with manga, and I have more anime merchandise than even I can believe. Prince of Tennis got me into cosplaying and tennis, and I am known around town as that "kid with the weird costumes and the Gary Oak boots."

I consider my life as one of an anime fan. I regularly attend conventions while cosplaying, and I try to get my friends interested in anime. Sometimes I succeed, but mostly I just aggravate them. I'm sure all anime fans can relate. I sometimes trick them into watching the riskier animes and OVAs such as Papa to Kiss in the Dark and Sensitive Pornograph, for which many of them will never forgive me. I draw my own fan art, and I regularly draw my friends' favourite characters as gifts. I adore fanfiction, and beta reading eventually led to my career as an editor and professional writer.

Most people don't understand my love of anime. Most of the anime geeks I know are men, who aren't so keen on sitting down and discussing how Prince of Tennis is filled with so many adorable pairings. I will be moving to Toronto soon, where hopefully I will be able to find other anime fans in the big city. This will also give me access to

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