i love u to the moon n back

writing process + acknowledgements ☽

i started writing this novel of poetry early in the summer of 2018 some time after my sixth grade year-which was documented in my first novel, Love, Loss, and Life (LLL). the first poem i ever unofficially released was adorable cat lover on June 23, 2018-the twelfth birthday of the person it was written for. i at first knew that it was going to be for a potential sequel for LLL, but then before releasing it i didn't know if all i had written for LLL was going to be enough as i had originally once thought that this would be it-no more novels of poetry; nothing. i even used to have adorable cat lover listed along with the other LLL pre-release poems before moving it back into a potential sequel story. it was only when i entered seventh grade when i realized i still needed to say and write more about my life. it was mainly therapeutic for me, but knowing my friends enjoyed my poetry after the release of LLL helped me move forward with writing.
my style, development, maturity-all of it-had grown and evolved as i kept writing. i did once hit a writer's block, but starting early in second semester was when i kept getting hit with waves of inspiration-waves i hadn't felt in months.
i made this book knowing it would have to be more of a cohesive piece of work, unlike LLL which were just a bunch of colliding ideas. there were still many different things in this one, though. i explored ideas of losing friendship again (but i made sure i didn't include any names after SUMMER), but i also ended up exploring deeper into heartbreak, romance, and the fantasies that abound from all of those feelings and thoughts and my kaleidoscopic emotions. all of it was so fascinating to me-how complex my mind was despite how simplistic my life could be. it's why so so so many poems ended up being written in such a long period of time (almost a whole year).
although some of these poems were written in times where i had never felt as low as i had this past year, i am forever grateful for what writing and going through all this has done for me. i can't thank everyone enough to whom has helped inspire me or guide me to the light-or even those who pushed me into the dark.
this novel, titled i love u to the moon n back, released one year after sharing adorable cat lover, holds such a dear place in my heart due to all i wrote about and what life threw at me during this year. the title is a simple line, but one i find sweet and something someone should say to someone they love at least once in their lives.
special thanks to a good friend of mine, alonso, for helping me edit the entirety of this book days in advance and for your immense support. ily man.
thank you to other friends who helped proofread the whole book, such as vivian, or even just certain poems. all my friends who helped me through this year. thank you to those who i may not speak to anymore yet whom are still special to me to this day. just tysm to everyone for helping me reach to this point of peace into the next chapter. your support is not forgotten.
the next chapter things will get rough. I can't say i'll truly be at peace soon, but i can promise to keep going. wanna bet how much i can write next time?

May 28, 2019
June 18, 2019