The Roads Taken

Preface

Dedicated to:
My sister Kiera,
Who saved my life and brought me back.
Ellen Hopkins,
Who when I met her, gave me my first piece of writing advice— just keep writing.
My Mother,
Who taught me that nothing is worth doing if you aren't having fun doing it...
and
My Father
Who brought me into the fantasy world before the real world.
Love you all xoxo

Holding my phone to my blind eyes, at 3 am, I quickly jot the words down onto my smart phone, completely ignoring that my glasses are not at home on my face and that it's well past my bedtime for me. I should be cuddle up with my dog under the covers fast asleep but when words come to you, you have to write them or that's how it works for authors anyways. I can remember that very first story I wrote. It wasn't on a phone as all they had was big box Nokia's at that time and I didn't have glasses back then. I was innocent and the world I was born into was fantasy, it was the land of The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks and the land of The Hundred Acre Wood (Whinnie the Pooh) by A. A. Milne. The real world to me was fantasy. I wrote about how I saw the world around me and as I grew I did the same, with each story, the world became less colourful. At some point I did have to realize the real world isn't fantasy (unfortunately) but that the world is such a drab place for some and a walking muse for others. For me, it's both. People walk around working 9-5 and never thinking about other things because work is all they can think about. The beauty lies around them all day and they don't see it. A lot of writers hope to convey the same beauty in the real life around them, hoping that those who can't see it around them can see it in a book. The pages may not smell like roses, the cover may not be the most beautiful, I may not write like George R. R. Martin or Ellen Hopkins or even C.S. Lewis but maybe I can give you a little taste of beauty, the one that is all around us. As I close my phone and put my silly over working brain to rest, I want you all to know that you have my gratitude for at least picking up this silly little book of mine and even if you don't read it, at least you saw my horrible attempt at trying to make a preface.
Thank you!
Sincerely yours,
Kaelan Farih

**Note: this book when published for profit will be released with my short story collection included. Any questions please contact me, no I don't know which title I'll use but you can let me know which you like more.