I am very pleased to announce that I have a book! I did entirely the wrong thing, and didn't tell anyone about it until I had the printed copy in my hand. Opening a box full of books that you wrote is something I never really expected to happen.
I have been overwhelmed with the support and Congratulations that I have gotten from friends and family. I'm unable to answer all their questions about how this came about but here are the top few.
When did you start writing?
I started writing this story in 2017 right after I finished a month long trip to East Asia. I was in between jobs and had taken time off to just be. I had stormed through some fantasy novels but was struggling to find something that I could really delve into (now my list is happily so long).
When I struggled to sleep at night as a child, a feature that continues into adulthood, I used to make up stories in my head till I fell asleep. This time, I wrote it down.
2. When did I have the time?
I honestly do not know. Most of the book was finished by the time I contacted a publishing company so in between life and my day job, I started the process of really polishing the story, being honest about my writing ( it was a bit shady in 2017 ) and working with professional editors. I am proud to say that company editors didn't have anything but praise for my story and that I just needed the most minimal editing. Yes I brag, because I can.
3. What is the book about?
The book is about finding yourself through a changing landscape. It's set in a fantasy world but I think the topics and life challenges my characters face are ones that we can all relate to. Who am I? Who am I after trauma? Do I have power and how do I get it? One of my favourite lines in the book is Keirin moaning to himself that ' Magic never helps with girls '. But I also definitely wanted a sense of wonder, of magic and of feeling I belonged in a world that is entirely of my own making.
One of the most touching outcomes of this experience has been the number of people who have said : I have also always dreamed of writing my own book. Somewhere along the path of life I thought it was only me that wanted to get lost in these worlds, to have characters on the page be your friends forever. So I don't know how I was lucky enough to get here. There has been so much help, so much support. And just a little belief, a small little spark that lead to me saying the most powerful phrase I know : Why not me?
So as I send my characters off into the wide world, the first several thousand words of their next story are already safe on my laptop. I don't know what this book will lead to, but I'm happy to have just gotten here with them. Best wishes and I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and new years!
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