Student Author Writes 4 Novels: Elizabeth May Spotlight (Part 1)

The Cyclone Chronicle staff boasts multiple student-authors, as previously written in an article by Elizabeth May, sophomore managing editor. While highlighting other authors, unassuming May mentioned she has written four novels. 

Four novels? I decided I needed to talk to her more about her writing career and what inspires her creativity. 

When did you first discover your passion for writing?

I've always kind of had a passion for writing. My first memory of really enjoying writing was when I was in kindergarten. The teacher had assigned a 'create your own dream house project,' and I made Dracula's castle. It was complete with a hot chocolate pool and marshmallow floaties, an attic full of bats, and a moat full of an indescript red liquid (Yes, I've always been the creepy kid). 

After that, writing was something I had in the background and didn't do much of, despite loving it. The next big reminder of my passion for writing came in fourth grade. I started writing this stupid series called the 'Manatee Apocalypse'. It was cheesy and somehow combined Star Wars, manatees, and The Walking Dead — don't ask me how. Also during this time, I wrote a series that was very much inspired by DreamWorks How to Train Your Dragon. That series was aptly named 'Dragons'. Both of those stories are where I truly started to spread my wings in creative writing, but what must go up must also come down. 

I lost my passion for writing somewhere in the middle of fifth grade. I had an assignment from a teacher asking us to talk about our dream career. When I said author, that teacher squashed that dream real fast. "Authors never make it anywhere in life; pick something else." I would love to drag that teacher's name through the mud for convincing little ten-year-old me that I couldn't do something I loved as a career, but I won't. 

It would be nearly three years later that I'd pick up creative writing again. In eighth grade, a different teacher had the class write their own versions of the reaping in The Hunger Games. It was then that I was reminded that writing was something that brought a special kind of passion to my life. 

In March of my eighth grade year, quarantine would hit. I found myself bored — like everyone else. I turned to writing, and on a whim, I posted a chapter of something I wrote online. Then I put my pen down for a week. I still hadn't considered writing as a career option; I just saw it as a side thing that made me happy. 

At the end of the first week of the chapter being online, I got a notification that someone had commented on my writing. "This is fantastic! When will you post the next chapter?" 

Alongside that comment were over 100 readers. That hit me like a train. People liked my writing. Mine. With that encouragement, I wrote more, and I watched the numbers grow. At the end of the first month — five chapters in — I had over 1,000 readers. The second month had tripled. It was that stupid whim that made me realize writing could be a career. That teacher from long ago was wrong. 

Even now, I go back and look at those numbers (now just over a million readers), especially when I get that feeling like writing won't take me anywhere. I might think that story I posted nearly six years ago is absolute garbage now, but every writer starts somewhere, and that was my restart — where I found my passion for writing again. 

Have any authors or specific books inspired you to write?

I mentioned my earlier writings based on How to Train Your Dragon, and that amalgamation of Star Wars, manatees, and The Walking Dead; I would say those were the original things that inspired me. Now it's a little different — I'd say certain books have definitely helped me come up with ideas. I immediately think of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. That book is one of my favorites, and I reread it at least once a year. 

But anyone who knows me well enough knows about the over 50 Stephen King books sitting on my shelves. King is my biggest inspiration and has been since I started writing consistently again. 

He's not my only inspiration, though. I also find inspiration in smaller authors and really anyone — excluding Colleen Hoover — who dares to take on the craft of writing. It might sound weird to non-writers, but I find that you can feel the passion put into an author's words. When I can find a book that screams, "This is my book, and I love everything about it," that author's passion gives me inspiration. Writing isn't easy, but it sure is fulfilling when there's raw passion behind it.

What genre do you enjoy writing most?

That's a tricky question. As someone who loves writing in general, I can find a passion in any genre of writing. I once, believe it or not, found romance to be my favorite genre. Then it transitioned to superhero novellas, and then to post-apocalyptic. I personally want to write in every genre, test everything. 

I will say, I have a tendency to write fantasy (high or low). I also like throwing unreliable narrators into the story and elements of horror. If I had to choose a genre, I'd likely say horror or high fantasy, considering those are the two genres I've written full novels. Out of the two, I couldn't pick a favorite genre because then it would feel like picking a favorite book I've written, and I love them all for different reasons. 

My high fantasy novels allow for more world-building and full creative control. If I want dragons to exist, they exist; there's no questioning it. My horror novels let me get nitty and gritty. I love getting to dive deep into details that are unsettling and cause the reader to cringe. And of course, there's more to each genre, pros and cons, that make them both appealing. I even find the constriction of writing something set in modern times to be fun. 

Writing is like one big puzzle sometimes. If I want to write a novel about a serial killer in 2026, there are so many elements I'd have to take into consideration, and I find that challenge fun. 

So, yeah, back to your question, I love writing anything, genre doesn't really affect my enjoyment — I even find the fun in academic writing. 

When did you complete your first novel? 

It depends on what you would count as finished and what my first novel actually is. I wrote online for a long time and finished many projects that could be considered novels, even though I have no plans to get any of them published. So if we're counting those as novels, I think it would be somewhere in May 2021 (it took me around a year to write that story—titled Finally Home—which is a superhero dystopian). 

But if we're talking about the stuff I do plan to publish, I'd tell you they aren't done just cause I'm still "editing" — really, I'm just nitpicky and rip my work to shreds every time I read it. 

I started my first high fantasy book, Reaper’s Return, sometime in early 2023 and finished before the end of the year. My second book, a sequel to the first titled Reaper’s Revenge, I started at the end of 2023 and finished in June 2024. I then put those two books down for a while and wrote a few short stories just to keep myself writing. 

Something didn't sit right with me about the ending of book two. My character's stories weren't over, and so in November 2024, I started planning book three titled Reaper’s Redemption. I actually started writing it in April 2025 and finished two months later. I finished my high fantasy trilogy and took a break from writing novels. I went back to short stories for a bit. 

In November 2025, I took on National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and wrote a whole new book called Under Your Skin — not at all connected to the previous books — in 30 days. This time, I took on the challenge of writing in a new genre, horror. 

I personally wouldn't say I've completed any of my books (you're your own worst critic, right?); but — if rough drafts count —  then the end of 2023 was my first novel, which was roughly 75,000 words or 250-300 pages. The following books in the high fantasy trilogy are around the same length, and my horror novel is slightly shorter, sitting at 55,000 words.

How do you manage your time between writing novels and academic work?

It's hard to find time for writing sometimes. It took a while for me to develop a routine and consistency to write outside of schoolwork. I first started in my senior year of high school, with the help of a teacher who also happens to be a writer. In a way, I'd call him my writing mentor. I also called him “scary bald man” (affectionately, I promise) because he would scold me if I didn't write daily. It was him that drilled into me writing is something you can improve with practice. 

Starting college, I had some issues balancing my personal writing and academic work. I discovered that setting a reasonable goal daily helps me stay consistent. I write at least 15 minutes a day. It's a low number, but at least it's something. 

I also learned that I consider writing optional in comparison to academic work, so I'd push it off to do something more important and then end up not writing creatively that day. I started to have myself do the optional work first — writing — then move on to academic work. You have to do academic work to pass a class, so there is no pushing that off like writing a novel. 

Continue Reading Student Author Writes 4 Novels: Elizabeth May Spotlight (Part 2)