Today I’m finishing the last chapter of Amid the Embers, and I may or may not be crying. Not just because of the story, but because this journey is almost over, at least this part of it. I know I still have two more books to write, but stepping away for summer classes, edits, rereads, and planning my book event means it might be months before Lily, Caleb, Max, Izzy, and Jesse speak to me again.
And yes, it sounds wild, but they did speak to me. I’d be doing something random and suddenly a whole scene would hit me like they were showing me what to write, like a movie in my head. These characters might be fictional to everyone else, but to me they were real, their emotions, their fears, their pain. When they cried, I cried. When Eldon tortured them, I had to take breaks because hurting them hurt me.
They helped me sleep. They gave me a world to escape to when I was scared or stressed. This book is so much more than a book, it’s mine. I started it for my eyes only and then realized it was too good not to share. I’ll keep writing their story because I want to know what happens, even if no one else ever reads it.
Thank you all for sharing this journey with me.
