In 2016, I wrote and published a book after going through mental trauma from a terrible work environment. Some people laugh at this, but it was a serious situation that left me scarred for months. I started writing as a way to cope, and before long I had half of a book written.
The book, titled Pirate Ophelia, parallels the events that happened in my life at that job, including meeting new friends, making enemies, and feeling betrayed by those I trusted. The story served as a way to purge my mind of the trauma and let me move on with my life. I would wake up from nightmares a few times a week—nightmares related to the job and that left me feeling depressed and upset, even though I couldn’t remember them.
I’ve planned to write a sequel for years but have yet to finish it. I found that I was stuck in my writing, unsure of the direction I wanted the story to go. I started thinking about a few of the main characters and began writing their stories. I had two prequels in the works, but I finished the backstory of the character Janneke first—the character that is based mostly on myself.
Today, that story, titled Pirate Ophelia: The Admiral’s Tale, is available to buy on Amazon Kindle. I am undecided if I want to create a printed version—the paperback would be just under 100 pages, which seems too small to print. Perhaps I will wait until the other prequel story is finished and publish them together. Either way, I feel proud that I have once again managed to sit still long enough to write a short book; a major accomplishment for someone who seems to have mild dyslexia and ADD.
I decided to release it today because it is my husband's and my fifth wedding anniversary. We gave out signed copies of Pirate Ophelia as favors when we had our official wedding celebration. We had eloped on August 16, 2017, two years to the day of our first date, and went ahead with the planned wedding in November. It seemed only fitting that Janneke’s story—my story—is released on this special day.
All of my published books can be found on my Amazon Author Page.