Seventeen-year-old Shadea Grazette is the author of the book Grow and Glow (A Self-Love Journal For Teen Girls).
The former student of Ellerslie Secondary School said that she always knew that she wanted to be a writer from the time she was a young child.
“When I was younger, I would always confuse my godmother telling her about writing a book, but I did not know if she believed me because I was young and would always laugh when I said it. Time passed and this year she asked me if I was still interested in writing a book and I said ‘Yes’. She asked if I wanted to do a journal and if so, about what. I gave it some thought and I chose the topic of self-love. As a teen girl myself, I know how it is to have very low self-esteem and I wanted to help myself and others to improve their self-esteem,” she said.
Grazette’s book was published by Shelev Publishing on Amazon on March 26th, 2022, when she was 16-years-old. Reflecting on the process she said that despite telling her godmother she wanted to write a book she never thought of being an author, in fact, she always wanted to be a chef.
“I never wanted to be a writer, per se, even though I would always tell my godmother I wanted to write a book. I have always wanted to be a chef and I am currently trying to do that. I love to watch TV and read, which I believe inspired me as a little girl to say, ‘I want to write a book.’ I would always go on Wattpad where you can write or read stories, real or fake and share with others,” she said.
The young author who is one of the youngest Barbadian-published authors, said that knowing that she is one of the youngest authors makes her feel a sense of pride as she had left secondary school without any CXCs.
“I am proud of myself. I left secondary school without any CXC’s and publishing this book honestly gave me a feeling of accomplishment as though I am still worth something. We may not all excel in the same areas but that never makes us less than anyone else. I am also very proud to know that my father is smiling in heaven. He recently died, which left me extremely heartbroken, but I am glad he was able to see me accomplish something,” she said.
Grazette said that the response from the public thus far has been encouraging and she is hopeful that when persons read this article and hears her story that they would seek to purchase her book. She also wished to thank her godmother Shaniqua Forde for making her dreams into a reality.
“Honestly, I had forgotten about writing a book so when she asked me, it all came rushing back to me. I have now published my first book and I hope that one day my book will be able to reach schools, churches and be a source of help and encouragement to many teen girls,” she said.
The young debut author quoted a paragraph from her book that she hopes would inspire others reading it: “Dear teen girl,
The journey to self-love is not the easiest, especially when we have encountered so much self-doubt and rejection even at a young age. I want this journal to help you become the best version of yourself.
My goal is to inspire confidence and help you celebrate yourself. My journey is not the best but it is not finished yet but as I continue to be the best me, I hope you do the same thing. I hope that you always remember how amazing you are, even on your rainy days. Loving and believing in yourself is one of the biggest investments you should make for your present and your future,” she said.
To purchase a copy of her book you can click the link below:
https://www.amazon.com/Grow-Glow-SELF-LOVE-JOURNAL-GIRLS/dp/9769676578/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?crid=3OCSRONP1VG9M&keywords=Shadea+Grazette+is+the+author+of+the+book+Grow+and+Glow+%28A+Self-Love+Journal+For+Teen+Girls%29.&qid=1656358927&s=books&sprefix=shadea+grazette+is+the+author+of+the+book+grow+and+glow+a+self-love+journal+for+teen+girls+.%2Cstripbooks-intl-ship%2C254&sr=1-1-fkmr0 Or, contact Shelev Publishing for the physical copies.
(Write Right PR Services)
Read our ePaper. Fast. Factual. Free.
Sign up and stay up to date with Barbados' FREE latest news.
Barbados Today firmly discourages any commentary or statements that are libelous, disruptive in nature or incites others to violate our Terms of Use. Any submissions made on our comment section, are solely the views of the individual and not Barbados Today.