"I wanted to be a writer since I was eight years old."

Translation: Eu queria ser escritor desde que eu tinha oito anos.

[ka7th]

why cannot I use havia instead of tinha

[Paulenrique]

when you have the age, ise the verb "ter" (have) and not "ser" (be) or "haver".

[earoquette]

when talking about age, you must use the verb to be as english: i'm 8, get it?