Hi, everyone!

My name is Taylor, AKA "Laila Amira" (loosely translated Arabic for "night princess"). I'm 21 years old, female, American, and a Christian.

I'm a college student, majoring in International & Cultural Studies with a focus on the Middle East. I speak passable Spanish (I can hold a conversation and get my point across, but I can't understand verb conjugations for the life of me!) and some Arabic (standard conversational phrases, some medical terminology, and vocabulary relating to radical Islam and terrorism).

I'm the daughter of a former police officer, fascinated by all things related to law enforcement and criminology. Since June 2007, I've been a civilian role player for my local law enforcement and first responders, playing all sorts of interesting characters for their training exercises. Valuable training for them, a very interesting experience for me, and lots of fun!

I've dealt with a lot of health challenges in my life, and have a ridiculously gigantic medical file. I was born four months premature, with mild Cerebral Palsy (mainly affects my left arm and leg) and Hydrocephalus (treated with a VP shunt). Between those two conditions and a variety of other issues, I've had 20 surgeries and too many hospital stays to count!

Outside of that, I live a normal life - I enjoy reading, writing, horseback riding, hiking, traveling, hanging out online, and spending time with friends and family. I have a good sense of humor, love to laugh, and am very sarcastic.

I love to write! I've been writing since I was 6 or 7 years old, everything from short stories to novella-length projects (more recently). I've been hanging out on various writer forums for years, sharing bits and pieces of my work here and there. I mainly write political thrillers, medical drama, and Christian fiction. (And fan fiction for the TV show "24" - love Jack Bauer!)

If you're writing something and have any questions about law enforcement operations/tactics/weapons, medical conditions/procedures, or the Middle East (geography, culture, Arabic language, Islamic terrorism), feel free to ask away and I'll do my best to answer!

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My Favorites:

Favorite Authors: Karen Kingsbury, Lurlene McDaniel, James Herriot, Tom Clancy, and Joel Rosenberg.

Favorite Magazines: Guideposts, Reader's Digest, TIME, Voice of the Martyrs

Comic Strips: Family Circus, Zits, For Better or For Worse

Movies: Prince of Egypt, Not Without my Daughter, Phantom of the Opera, Sahara, Home Alone 1 & 2, Night at the Museum, Evan Almighty, Freedom Writers, The Guardian, Hotel Rwanda, Invisible Children documentary, To Save A Life, The Blind Side

TV Shows: 24 (BEST. SHOW. EVER.), Glee, Lie To Me, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, ALIAS, Prison Break, The Nine, Amazing Race

Actors: Kiefer Sutherland, Kim Raver, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Jennifer Garner, Jayne Atkinson, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, Annie Wersching, Matthew McConaughey, Matt Damon

Type of Music: Christian, Arabic, Celtic

Bands/Artists:
Celtic: Enya, Celtic Woman, Clannad, Blackmore's Night
Arabic: Samira Saied, Hakim, Cheb Mami, Elissa
Spanish: Juanes, Las Ketchup, Carlos Vives, Ricky Martin
Christian: Hillsong United, Chris Tomlin, Third Day, Selah, Robin Mark, NeedToBreathe

Sports/Activities: Reading, creative writing, horseback riding, hiking, camping, rifle and pistol target shooting, moulage makeup, hanging out with friends.

Travel Spots: Colorado, Arizona, Vancouver/British Columbia, Mexico, Spain, Jordan, Israel

Food: Pizza, pasta, tacos, Qdoba nachos, anything chocolate, Middle-Eastern food, apples, nectarines.