The way I see it, there are 2 ways, the first and best way you could handle this is by talking to her, tell her that you are 18 and old enough to take care of yourself and that you deserve privacy just like any other NORMAL TEEN and that its not normal for moms to take things out of trash can and keep it for years. The second way if all else fails, you can try to be more secretive and try not to get caught, put a password to your email, lock your room door, burn letters and poems you have wrote. Good luck I hope you can handle your problems.
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.