Neha Gopa, an A&M Consolidated High School senior, has kept a diary throughout the years and has sometimes written in a personal blog, but crafting a 103-page book with a flowing plot line was a special kind of challenge, as well as a unique form of therapy, she said.
After three years of work, an A&M Consolidated High School senior has published her first novel, a coming-of-age story that reflects some of her personal struggles and aspirations.
Neha Gopal worked on the book — simply titled 10 — each night, using writing as a form of therapy. She said she hopes the result can ultimately speak to another person who is trying to find his or her way in life.
“It’s every writer’s dream to publish a book,” Gopal said. “I didn’t want to just do competitions anymore. I wanted to write a book. I’ve wanted to do it since I was a little girl. I’ve had a lot of determination, and I knew I had to just do it.”
She has kept a diary throughout the years and has sometimes written in a personal blog, but crafting a 103-page book with a flowing plot line was a special kind of challenge, as well as a unique form of therapy, she said. When Gopal started writing her novel, she was struggling with depression and didn’t always have an effective way to communicate how she was feeling, but creating the fictional characters of Simone and Joy empowered her to speak.
“The book is about two girls,” she explained. “One of them, Simone, is troubled and has mental illness. She goes through a lot in her life and doesn’t handle situations very well. She’s a typical teenager. The other girl, Joy, is calm and compassionate. Joy travels the world and tries to help save her friend from herself. The story is about friendship, living the best life you can, and growing up. ... I do love writing, and I put some of my own pain into the character who is suffering. The other character represents what I strive to be, and what I think everybody should strive to be. She’s the best version of myself.”
Gopal, who plans to study neuroscience at Southwestern University in Georgetown, is actively involved with the Brazos Valley chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness [NAMI], along with her father, Kreshna Gopal, who appeared in a September 2018 Eagle article discussing a teen mental health support group he created. Kreshna Gopal has been one of his daughter’s greatest supporters as she worked on her novel, frequently acting as editor and sounding board.
Gopal said that she and her dad are close, but in the past it had been a little difficult to share certain things with him. By writing her own experiences into her main characters’ story, she was able to open up to her father in a way she hadn’t before.
“The book does make me a little more vulnerable about my feelings, and sometimes I do struggle with that,” Gopal said.
Kreshna Gopal has experience in technical writing and has had some pieces published through media outlets, but he has never written a book of his own. Helping his daughter edit her book was a learning experience for him as well, as he had underestimated all the work that goes into creating a work of fiction to this scale.
“Some of it was kind of tough,” he said. “I kind of encouraged her to be candid and open up. There is a part of the book where she talked very aggressively about the dad character, but I did understand it was OK, and I understood there is a lot of fiction surrounding it. ... I think the book is very inspiring. I think it is also quite a serious book.”
Gopal’s story was self-published on Amazon in February, featuring cover art commissioned by an artist online. Though Gopal would like to see her book — which has been purchased by some family and friends — accrue popularity, her greatest desire is for the story to speak encouragement into her readers’ hearts and minds, she said.
“It would be nice for it to become popular, but I hope it impacts people and is a positive influence,” Gopal added. “Writing this book made me get through the hard times, and I hope it inspires people and helps them get through their hard times.”
The book is available in paperback for just under $10, while the Kindle edition costs about $3. The book can be found at http://bit.ly/Gopalbook.
