GIGI: How TF Did I Come Up With This Story?

It was 2012, I had just got home from a long day at school on a Saturday from 8:00 to 5:00. I was exhausted but all I wanted to do was cuddle up with my little boy and watch his favorite little TV shows. Then when he went to bed I started to think about my dinner, fish sticks. I thought to myself has there ever been anyone that named a book fish sticks? Probably not but I started writing about a girl who was having trouble living with her mom, obviously inspired by my own issues. My mother and I never really got along, it just seemed as though as soon as I started to have my own thoughts my own opinions, we began to drift apart at a very early age. I noticed that I began to be good at nothing. She took pride in doing my hair but it seemed only for compliments for herself . She would ridicule me about my weight, yet constantly bring me unhealthy foods to shut me up. One day when I was about 7 she told me that I needed to lose weight because no man would ever marry me if I'm wasn't beautiful. So I considered myself not beautiful. That feeling of inadequacy never really left, it's always here like a kind friend who was passive-aggressive asf. Years went on and I had only written maybe three pages of the beginning of the book. Then when the pandemic hit, I was married with a family, my wife said: "you remember that book you talked to me about? Finish it." Why not finish it? she asked. I didn't have an answer to that. I didn't have any reason not too considering, we can never leave the house so why not. It took me about another year and a half to finish the book and perfect it. I wanted it as raw as possible with no quirks. If there are errors in it, I embrace them because they are imperfect like myself. Ebony story just happened from day to day, doing chores or cooking dinner another paragraph or two popped into my head and I immediately wrote them down. And it just happened. I'm so happy that it happened and that she was born. Even if I was not thinking about a sequel, I'm still very humbled and blessed to know that a piece of me has been shipped all over the country in other parts of the world.