Erik Smalls is driven by passion and purpose. His pain became his story. Erik is the author of three novels "Never Give Up," "Eye for an Eye," and "Cold Blooded" all available on Amazon, Kindle and Hardback. He is currently working on the screenplay of his autobiography

Never Give UpBorn in the hood

In most cases, people born in the hood never make it out. They fall victim to the circumstances of poverty, abuse, broken homes, poor educational systems, criminal behavior, pushers, prostitutes and so on... Their lives are like a ticking time bomb waiting to explode, but that's not the case for Erik. He clawed his way out of the hood by rewriting a compelling story.

Be in it to win it

We can't control the hand that life deals but we can control how that hand plays out. What I mean by that is this: Our past may be riddled with pain but what happens if we turn that pain into purpose? What happens if our pain rewrites our story? And what happens if our story helps someone else?

Use your pen as a weapon

Put pen to paper and use it as a weapon. For every tear you've cried, write it down. For every defeat you've experienced write it down. For every broken heart you've endured, write it down. You may discover that broken pieces make an extraordinary story.

Writing is Erik's saving grace