Twelve-year-old Wanstead resident Riku Fryderyk shares their journey to publishing their second book, Music to My Ears, which, with a 62,000-plus word count, may set a new world record for a child author
I have been passionate about writing from a very early age, starting out writing short stories on paper and then moving to writing with a more professional approach, which led to the publication of my first book, The Witching Hour, at the age of 10.
During the process of publication, I began writing a novel whose storyline evolved and changed over time, and countless hours of writing and editing have finally brought me to the moment where I officially announce that Music to My Ears is now available to order on Amazon in eBook and paperback. It is a book in a series called On the Edge of Destruction, which I am planning to continue.
I am incredibly proud of this book, especially because I believe this is the longest book ever written by a child in the world, coming in at 62,671 words. I am very excited about what the future has to hold for my new book.
Music to My Ears is about a 16-year-old called June Watson, who lives in London and has a passion for creating and playing music. Her GCSE exams are on the approach; however, her life is turned upside down as she battles mind control, is betrayed by those whom she trusted and discovers her father’s secrets. This leads to her being thrown into the midst of an attack on the citizens of London.
It has been quite an uphill battle to write, edit and publish this book, but with a lot of support from my mum, I always regained the motivation to continue until my goal was achieved. As I grew older, the book itself seemed to evolve, with my style and quality of writing changing and the plot becoming more refined and realistic. I like to look back on my original drafts of this book from three years ago. I wrote the majority of Music to My Ears on an electronic typewriter, which allowed me to write distraction-free and for a longer time. Being an author has brought me much joy from hosting my own creative writing workshops, speaking to other writers and seeing my book standing proudly on the shelves of well-known bookstores such as Waterstones in Piccadilly Circus.
Aside from writing, I have narrated a handful of audiobooks and run a YouTube channel which has grown significantly in the past year. I’ve always been a performing arts lover, too, and love being in productions.
However, I manage to leave enough time for working on my books and continue my love for writing; a bright, burning candle flame which will never go out.
Riku’s novel Music to My Ears is available from Amazon (£7.99). For more information and to order a copy, visit wnstd.com/riku
