“I did not think I was going to be doing this.”

We all have said this at some point, but Kennedy Jarrett (11) said this in regard to doing something completely out of the ordinary. Jarrett wrote a book called the “The Alpha Guilt,” which is available for purchase on Amazon.

“The Alpha Guilt” is a psychological thriller about a pandemic called “the Black” that drives the population insane with guilt and suicidal thoughts. The novel follows Valerie, a girl who is beginning to discover the heart of the Black. She has the choice to accept, reject or change the effects of the Black.

Jarrett’s boredom in freshman year led to her creative pursuits. She constructed the idea of a widespread mental pandemic, so she wrote an entire novel about it and its effects upon society.

“I’d always liked writing,” Jarrett said. “When I was in sixth grade I tried to write my first book, wrote a chapter of it and quit, so I’d always wanted to write a book. I figured this was a way to do it.”

Her desire to write continued to motivate her through the tedious process of writing a full-length novel.

She details the highs and lows of the process of writing her book. The best part, she reveals, was the final product after the text looked the way she had envisioned it to be.

According to her, “Editing is where the magic happens.”

The major obstacles she had to face were time management and losing portions because of computer error. However, the support of her family helped her stick to her writing.

“[They had] me continue to pursue,” Jarrett said. “Really, there was just an overwhelming amount of support.”

Another challenge she faced was writing the last chapter. Jarrett confided that she knew exactly what she wanted the ending to be, but she hesitated in writing it, as she didn’t want her first draft to be over.

However, Jarrett found motivation to finish the novel. She was realistic in that she knew her first draft was not going to be her best work. She used the term “garbage” in its description.

Knowing this, her mom said something that inspired her to continue:

“This is awful, but it has potential. Keep going.”

Her honest review motivated Jarrett to write five more drafts despite the first one taking approximately six months. Her perseverance and dedication to writing led to her completing her novel and publishing it.

She only has one piece of advice to any other aspiring authors:

“Read and write. That is literally all you can do.”