LOHS senior Sarah Novitsky is nearing completion on her first draft of the 104,000 word young adult fantasy novel tentatively titled “Guardian: The Celestial.” The idea of the novel has been blossoming since seventh grade, and now, thanks to Covid-19, she’s had time to put pen to paper. 

“I wanted to remain productive while also doing something that I loved,” Novitsky revealed. “It was also a nice distraction from the horrible news that continued to blow in proportion each day.”

The novel features an enigmatic girl as the protagonist, Guardian Angels with demon enemies and a prophecy about the destruction of balance in the afterlife. Novitsky expressed, “I hope my characters are likable! Flawed, for sure, but overall you’ll want to be rooting for them.”

Novitsky plans on traditionally publishing her novel, and ultimately dreams of becoming a professional author. She wrote, “If I’m not a full time author at some point in my life, then I’ll be very disappointed. My dream job is just to write and write and write books forever.”

Like many authors, Novitsky’s source of inspiration and writing style has developed from the numerous books she reads. “I’ve always loved the feeling that reading gives me, and I want to create that same feeling for other people with my stories.” 

In her novel, the characters aren’t based on real people, but Novitsky described, “I definitely pour a lot of myself into the main character. A lot of her insecurities, worries and inner workings reflect mine. It’s almost therapeutic in a way.” 

Although senior year is busy, Novitsky manages to find time to write by prioritizing her schedule. Normally, extracurricular activities conflict with her writing, but it’s easier due to the  excessive free time created by Covid-19. 

Despite all of her productivity during quarantine, Novitsky struggles like any author. Writing takes longer than she anticipated, and keeping track of the myriad of plot points and characters has been challenging. 

Novitsky recognizes that she wouldn’t have come this far without her first editor and best friend, Julia Yazhari. 

While describing her favorite aspect of writing, Novitsky recounted, “Just seeing my characters and world come alive on the page. There’s a point in writing where the characters just start having a mind of their own.”

Novitsky advises beginning writers, “Don’t try to conform to any standards. Just write what you want to write and something great will come out of it.”

 Above all, she emphasises that, “Writing is a great way to express your imagination and creativity.”