00:01I know it's not easy to find your passions and follow them, so when you find an opening, you should
00:06take it.
00:07When I was five years old, I said I wanted to own all the books in the world.
00:12I haven't quite gotten there, but I'm getting closer.
00:15For most of my life, I was homeschooled, so it was always me and my books.
00:19They became my escape to a different world.
00:22Now, my job is to get to tell stories.
00:25That's why I started Bellatrist.
00:27I was inspired to create a space where people could connect with others, share what's on their mind, talk about
00:32books they love, and go deeper.
00:34A community for the curious.
00:36I started Bellatrist with my best friend, Kara.
00:39She was out in New York and I was in LA, and we'd pick up the phone and connect over
00:43a book we just read.
00:44It kept us close. Books became the common thread between us.
00:48So, we took this idea of taking this connective thread and expanded it to the wider world.
00:54Once we made the jump and Bellatrist went live, it was like, wow, it's now real.
00:59There is no going back.
01:01Which was kind of liberating, because it's always the before that is the hardest, and then once you do it,
01:06you just do it.
01:07Whenever you start something new, there will always be people who will tell you that you are too this or
01:11too that.
01:12So, you might as well be yourself.
01:15It's not easy to find your passions and then find the courage to follow them.
01:20But when you do, the whole world opens up.
01:23I promise.
