Teen author Alexandra Theobald.
A Michael Oak Waldorf School pupil will be launching her self-published sci-fi novel for teens with a reading at her school.
After taking close to two years to finish writing her book, Alexandra Theobald, 14, has taken it on herself to publish it, after numerous disappointments from publishers, as part of her Grade 8 school project.
The 300-page book, Subways and the Contest of Elements, is about a girl named Luke Greyford who doesn't feel as if she belongs on earth and escapes with her cat, Pasti, to outer space. They crash land on planet Ran, where the inhabitants have strange elemental powers. Luke then discovers that she’s more connected to planet Ran than she thought and a series of adventures ensues.
From a young age, Alexandra started telling stories to herself and her younger sister and began drawing picture books because she didn’t know how to write. Her parents bought her a computer for her 10th birthday and encouraged her to use it to write her stories, but this was a strange and new concept to her as she was used to writing and drawing on paper.
“I tried to write on the computer but it just didn’t work. Then I went on a camp with my friend, and I suddenly thought that ‘Subways’ would be a really cool name for a book. And then everything happened from there. Another friend and I kept coming up with more elaborate plots until it turned into what looked like it was going to be a four-book series. Without her, I don’t think I would have a book,” she said.
Alexandra said the process was hard, but the end result made it worth it.
“When I came up with a plot twist, I would prance around our garden with joy. Writing and reading are my melodies of happiness, and I enjoy creating whole worlds inside my head daily.”
The joys of finishing her book though were followed by numerous disappointments from publishers and agents.
“I began asking for advice from an agent and ‘writing mentor’ who ghosted me. I started searching for publishers who didn’t need an agent and accepted unsolicited authors, which was quite tricky. When I thought I found the perfect publishers, I would then discover that they don’t accept sci-fi, or they have a word limit or age limit, which was frustrating at times. Eventually, I finally found publishers that I thought would work and submitted to them. It turned out they ask for a ton of money and give nothing much in return.”
Alexandra said she received a lot of requests for her book and printed a small run for the school which sold out quickly. At the school fair, she also received many more pre-orders for another print run.
The school will be holding a small book launch for her on Monday November 11. Alexandra said her school had been very supportive and allowed her to live out her dreams.
Her mother, Tanya Jordaan, said she only got to read the book after it was done, when Alexandra had asked for help editing it.
“Alexandra has been writing stories for so long that it’s just part of who she is. Even at the age of four, after every story she ever wrote (drew), she would sit with her sister and ‘read’ it to her. I remember looking in from the outside and thinking, ‘How special this experience is, for the two of them to bond over stories from Alexandra’s imagination’.”
Ms Jordaan said she was amazed at how beautifully written and connected the story was.
“I found the story of friendship so strong, and I enjoyed it tremendously. Alexandra is so dedicated to her writing and the amount of hours and effort she puts into it is astonishing. To see her flourish, doing something she loves has made me the proudest mother on earth.”
Alexandra’s English teacher, Melissa Smith, said: “We are all so impressed with Alexandra, her love for language and her natural talent for world building. It is an honour to be part of Alexandra’s journey, as we look ahead to reading and experiencing the beauty and truth of her worlds not yet shaped.”
Alexandra has started writing the second book in the series and has plots planned for the next four books.
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