Full-time student, part-time author

By Brianna Kurzynowski | gargoyle@flagler.edu

Imagine, writing and publishing your own novel before you graduate high school. Allison Struck, junior at Flagler College, did just that.

Struck began writing her novel, Love’s Beach, when she was in the sixth grade. While in middle school, she was able to use her time before school to write, while her mom, who worked at the school tutored other children. “I was in a creative writing class in my middle school, and by halfway through the semester we were having Friday show and tell where I was reading chapters of my book to the class,” Struck said.

Struck was inspired by the love stories of Nicholas Sparks as well as the film, “Monster in Law.”

“Love’s Beach is the story of Terrie Conner who is an old renowned author, who sits on the seawall every day and writes,” Struck said. “Every day, Terrie would see this man run down the beach with his dog and he sparked ideas for Terrie to write about. Finally one day they ran into each other.”

The novel’s plot involves elements of love, dealing with family and two adults fitting their lives together.

Once Struck got to high school, her novel was put to the side until her junior year. “I really decided I should probably finish this because I’m really good at starting things and not finishing things,” she said.

In high school, Struck was a member of the band and she was introduced to her publisher at one of the football games.

“We were in the stands performing and my mom had talked to my friend’s dad who had started a publishing company and he said when you’re done with your book I would really like to be your person that you go to publish it,” Struck said.

Struck finished her novel in her junior year of high school. She then sent the novel to a past writing teacher, a family friend who was an English teacher and her grandmother who taught English at a community college. After they edited the novel, Struck sent the novel to her publisher. “It was officially out and ready to go online right after I graduated high school,” Struck said.

Struck’s novel is sold online only, on sites such as Amazon, Books-a-Million and Barnes and Noble.

Struck wrote the novel for herself but was not opposed to the economic benefits on writing and publishing. “What I put into it I have gotten back and more. I don’t think I’ve made a major surplus, but I definitely haven’t lost anything,” Struck said.

“I am only one person in a very big sea of books,” she said.