Year 18

Author's Note 8/19/2023

Trigger Warnings: loss of a family member, cancer

Hey everyone!

I cannot begin to apologize enough for how long it has been since I last updated Year 18. There were many times I wanted to hop onto Wattpad and write a "chapter" for author's notes, but it never felt right. I didn't want to come back without a new chapter of Year 18 for you guys to read. That being said, I have tried to respond to comments and emails. I am also sorry that I was very delayed in that as well. For some reason, I was not receiving notifications. I have tried to check more frequently because of that, but there are times I am better about that than others.

Where have I been the past year? I know some of you expressed concern for my absence, and I want to thank each and every one of you that continued to support my stories and checked in to see how I was. Last year I was wrapping up my final college classes, which took up a lot of time on its own. I was excited that with that chapter in my life being over, I would hopefully have more time to write. Very soon after classes were done, my grandma ended up being taken to the hospital. It was all very sudden, and we thought at the time there was nothing to worry about. Then, a couple days into her stay she took a serious turn and ended up passing away. It was difficult not only in the aspect of losing someone we all loved, but also in the aftermath of it all. It was then time to deal with things such as her will and her estate, etc. This was a very long and at times arduous process, as most things are when family matters are involved. 

My grandma was one of the people who truly inspired me to write. She was the first person (outside of peer editing in school) I let read my work. I think she was the first to read a book I wrote many years ago, the first book I ever finished. She was quick to edit for me. I actually appreciate it looking back, even if at the time I felt a bit discouraged. As she grew older, her memory started to fade. She stopped reading. I was in the process of trying to gradually record myself reading my books so she could hear me read them to her. I wasn't able to finish that project. I felt grief at her loss in every way. Still, the connection we had as writers was a difficult pain to ignore. 

I didn't feel like writing during that time, but I did. It helped sometimes. However, since even before this, back in 2020 when the world seemed to feel so surreal, I lost a lot of ambition to write a dystopian novel. At times, it felt like we were living in one. Writing was so often my escape. I didn't want to have Year 18 feel like a chore. I knew I would not do justice to my book, and it would not be fair to any of you either. Still, I know the long wait wasn't fair either.

When I did write, I worked on a novel I started in 2020. It is the novel I am working to revise and hope to publish as my debut. I am so, so excited for it.

I only really got back to working on it a while ago, after my grandma had passed. I had taken a break from writing, as I mentioned. Then, within a month, we received the news that two very close family members had been diagnosed with cancer. Both have been such a tremendous part of my life, and I attribute my love for reading and writing to both of them as well. I felt like shutting down again in many ways. However, that part of me that was so devastated my grandma didn't get to read my stories before she passed asked me to keep writing. 

So, back in July, I finished that novel. We'll call it, "Project Night". I hope in the future to be able to discuss it more. It helped rekindle that writing bug in me that (actually quite a few years ago now) prodded me to join Wattpad. I never once thought I would have such a supportive and dedicated group of readers who love these characters and their story like I do. Kane and Felisha were just these ideas 14-year-old me had. Now, almost ten years later, through all of you, they have become so much more.

I could not be more thankful!

For all those reasons, I was not quick to rush back into the story. I wanted my heart to be in it. I felt the characters and all of you deserved that.

Moving forward, I will be posting regularly once more. I won't promise a frequency as too often life throws curveballs and I don't want to break any more promises to any of you. However, I will be sure to keep you all updated if there are any delays. I want to loosely aim for once every other week (at least) if not more frequently.

Thank you again!

I hope you enjoy the newest chapter <3