Guest Post: My Writing Journey by Hannah Reimers

September 26, 2016 · by Madeline Dyer · in Guest Posts & Author Tours

Hi everyone! I’m SO honored to be here! I am the author of The Pretend Friend Association series. The PFA might be one of the weirdest series ever written, because it tells the completely true story of an imaginary world. Let me back up a decade or so and explain.

When I was little, I had an overactive imagination. Many children have stuffed animals, dolls, and invisible imaginary friends, but mine were a little more complex than average. My brother and I created an entire “world” of pretend characters. When I was nine or ten, I lovingly dubbed my “inner circle” of favorite characters the PFA, or “Pretend Friend Association.”

Rather than giving up my “friends” as I grew, my imagination seemed to expand. In fifth grade, I began writing fictional stories about the PFA. The characters ranged from Pepper, a stuffed animal kitten with a low voice, to a family who survived the apocalypse of their home world. An ongoing plot included the adventures of preteen human Jobelle Newbrey as she adjusted from life in the entirely fictitious dimension of Mara to life in the literally-beneath-the-earth Underground City.

As I got older, the stories got more complex. I wrote at least one or two stories every day, and before long, I had quite the collection. After I stopped pretending that the PFA members were interacting with me, I kept typing what I remembered of my imaginary childhood escapades. My parents knew that I once had imaginary friends, but they didn’t realize that those characters remained the subject of the many “stories” I spent hours recording. The only person who knew the secret of my favorite pastime was my younger brother. I was afraid to tell anyone else because I thought I might be considered weird. During this time, I began teaching myself about stories and writing. My dream was to become an author someday, although I felt I didn’t have any good ideas… besides the PFA, of course, but that was obviously something I thought was “off-limits!” It was too personal and way too freaky!

In eighth or ninth grade, I stopped writing my original PFA stories. I was busy with school, band, church, and all the other normal fourteen-year-old activities. I kept all of my stuffed animals, but other than that, the PFA faded to a good memory.

I was diagnosed with kidney disease in 2007, and my world flipped upside-down. Thankfully, it was a gradual flip. I lived an almost normal life with the slightly annoying additions of three morning medicines and weekly after school trips to the doctor. We believed my disease would go into remission before it became chronic (as some cases of this illness do), and I spent the first half of my sophomore year as a semi-normal teenager with a few extra issues.

Slowly but surely, I got sick… and I mean sick. The initial medical steroids meant to put my disease into remission didn’t work, so I switched to other strong, chemo-like medications in hopes of saving my kidneys. I missed three months of school. When I went back, it was only for one or two days each week.

One day, I found my stack of PFA papers and began rereading them. I found myself fully engaged by my old childhood adventures. Before long, I began writing new stories with my old characters. Rather than keeping a diary that chronicled my disease, I wrote my real-life stories in analogies and through the eyes of my cast of characters. When I felt isolated in my struggles one day, an idea popped into my head. I decided to give one of the PFA characters kidney disease, so I wouldn’t feel quite as alone. When people asked me if I felt lonely, I could honestly say “no”- maybe I didn’t have my family or friends around during the long weekdays, but I had God, and I had my imaginary characters.

My kidneys deteriorated, and by my eighteenth birthday, my nephrologist referred me to a transplant hospital. It was absolutely not what I wanted. I wanted a “total cure,” not remission through the difficulties an organ transplant. I was on dialysis for three months and received a kidney from my incredible cousin in June 2010. I wrote my stories through the entire process and continued for about a year and a half afterwards. After all, transplantation is not a cure, and though I wasn’t diagnosed until recently, I also had Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, an autonomic nervous system disorder that causes my heart to race every time I stand or walk.

In late 2011, I was trying to “wrap up” the PFA stories for my own closure. I knew that I was “better”- far from normal, but possibly good enough to be able to pursue some type of career, even if it was part-time. Meanwhile, many family and friends had been pestering me to write a book about my miraculous journey to and beyond transplantation. Needless to say, being the writer I am, I tried to do so but got tired of retelling my sometimes-depressing adventures. Something was missing.

One night while attempting to write something worth reading, I closed the document in frustration and opened an old file filled with PFA stories written during the pre-transplant era. I showed my mom some of my old work, and while she wasn’t too enthusiastic, she thought I could probably publish what I had.

Then it clicked- the missing piece was my imagination. On March 4, 2012, I wrote the first ten or so pages of the PFA. It was a God thing because I still don’t know how I got the idea to write the way I did. I wrote in a diary-format and somehow knew to go back and forth in time, telling three stories at once: the story of a unique eleven-year-old trying to “survive” sixth grade, paralleled with that same girl struggling to survive kidney disease four years later. I infused pieces of my PFA stories- some original and some added- into the rough draft. I showed my mom, and this time she was very enthusiastic- more than I had anticipated!

Over the next few months, I wrote the first fifty pages of The PFA. Along the way, it transformed from a non-fiction memoir to a fictional novel. Slowly I changed the details of my protagonist’s life. She was no longer “me,” but a girl who had lived my story. I created a fictional town, switched around some facts, and used a little more creative license (although the timeline and events of my kidney disease journey remained unaltered). I changed the protagonist’s name to Anna Grace Shramere, and things began falling into place.

I was going to attempt to get The PFA published traditionally, but it would have been too many words for a breakout novel. I felt led to self-publish, and with my mom’s help, that’s what I did. In December 2012, The PFA- Part One: Stories was released in e-book format on Amazon. Since then, we’ve published the first eight of twelve novellas. I’m focused on finishing the series rather than advertising, so I haven’t had great sales by any means. Even so, I am constantly amazed by great reviews and wonderful feedback, and thanks to my readers, the series is slowly yet steadily picking up a fan base.

Several people have asked, “what comes next? I can’t wait to see the next world you create!” Strangely enough, I’m almost positive that I will never be able to move on from the imaginary world of the Pretend Friend Association. I’ve worked on this series in some form or another for most of my life, and I don’t seem to be able to write anything that could take place in a different “universe.” There’s a science to Anna Grace’s world (literally- in the series, it’s called Imaginary-Reality Theory, and it is “the study of all things imaginary and how they relate to the real world.”) It has taken years to develop these characters, and I cannot fathom starting from scratch!

Of course, that doesn’t mean there aren’t endless possibilities for more PFA adventures. Because I have spent so much time with this series, I have developed entire subplots that will never make it into the series. My computer is filled with never-to-be-published “missing” scenes, and almost every background character has a complex background story! I don’t have anything particular in mind, but I suppose there could be spin-offs that revolve around certain imaginary characters. Also, if the series does well enough, I will definitely publish a sequel novel. If it comes to fruition, the next installment will likely be one or two novels that showcase Anna Grace’s fight to write, publish, and publicize her series while battling ongoing health challenges. And just like its predecessors, it will include plenty of imaginary adventures.

But for now, my biggest focus is to finish the series. I’m often asked, “how long does it take to write a book?” That’s a complicated question for me. The easiest answer is that it takes six to eleven months to complete one novella, but that’s not exactly correct. My process is likely different than most fiction author’s, because I get to skip some of the “development” phases most people go through. The “real” medical half of each novella is based on my true story, and while I do have to tweak dates and details, I don’t have to worry about character motives or plot holes. These things really happened to me! So there are rough drafts and re-writes, but it’s pretty straight-forward. As far as the imaginary world, I went through the character development stages for years, long before I ever knew I’d share my stories! By the time I started writing The PFA with publishing in mind, most of the imaginary characters and general plotlines were already pretty finalized, although they needed a LOT of fine-tuning, rewriting, and editing! There are absolutely HUGE differences from what I wrote as a sixteen-year-old to what Anna Grace writes as a sixteen-year-old. But that said, when I started this project in March 2012, I was not starting from scratch. I knew Anna Grace’s true story, and I knew the characters and imaginary world and basics of the story… although I will admit I had no clue how the books would end until a medical experience in September 2012. The details will be featured in the eleventh or twelfth novella. I can’t wait to share! I will give this hint: this series isn’t only about a girl who survives against all odds or her imaginary world. It’s about a girl who discovers that dreams can come true in spite (or even because!) of hardship, and that miracles are possible.

As I write along, I do my best to advocate for chronic and invisible illnesses. This week is Invisible Illness Awareness Week, and in honor of the event, The PFA: Parts One to Four digital box set will be free from September 27 through October 2, 2016 (that’s Tuesday through Saturday)! Simply visit The PFA product page on Amazon for your free download.

The final four novellas will be coming out over the next eighteen months or so. The PFA: Part Nine- Admissions will hopefully be available in January or February 2017. My ongoing “medventures” occasionally cause delays, but the goal is to finish the entire series by summer 2018. Information will be posted on The PFA’s Facebook page as it becomes available.

Thank you so much for reading this post, and a huge shout-out to Madeline for letting me share with you! I hope you’ll consider joining Anna Grace on this half-medical, half-fantasy journey where fact is stranger than fiction, and anything is possible in both imaginary and real worlds.

About the books…

The Pretend Friend Association- Parts One to Four

Anna Grace Shramere may only be sixteen, but she’s dying. Thankfully, she has a secret weapon against kidney failure- her imaginary world of The Pretend Friend Association.

As children, siblings Todd and Anna Grace Shramere created an imaginary world. Guided by nine “Rules of Imagination,” Anna Grace wrote hundreds of stories about a fantastic realm, filled with imaginary friends, secret superheroes, talking stuffed animals, flying cars, and parallel universes.

Several years later, Anna Grace is thrust into the frightening world of hospitals and infusions when she is diagnosed with a potentially life-threatening kidney disease. The sixteen-year-old copes by immersing herself in the fictional stories she wrote as a child. As her health deteriorates, Anna Grace darkens her stories by giving her disease to one of the youngest imaginary characters as well as adding villains and criminals to the once-safe imaginary city. As Anna Grace fights for her life, the fate of the inhabitants of the Underground City hangs in the balance.

Based on the author’s true story, this e-book contains the first four novellas of The PFA series. The Pretend Friend Association Parts One through Four are available separately as The PFA: Part One- Stories, The PFA: Part Two- Diagnostics, The PFA: Part Three- Seasons, and The PFA: Part Four- Decisions.

Read an excerpt from the PFA part one!

Hannah has very kindly provided us with an excerpt from part one. Click here to read it for free! Thanks, Hannah!

Buy Links:

Amazon US- https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013H4FMR6

Amazon UK- https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B013H4FMR6

Amazon Canada- https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B013H4FMR6

The Pretend Friend Association- Parts Five to Eight

Anna Grace Shramere may only be sixteen, but she’s dying. Thankfully, she has a secret weapon against kidney failure- her imaginary world of The Pretend Friend Association.

“There are so many fears that come with begin a chronically ill teenager. My most irrational fear was that if I died, my characters would die, too.”

Two years later, Anna Grace is still far from healthy. As she continues to fight her ever-progressing kidney disease, she darkens the plot of her fictional stories. The citizens of the Underground City must come to terms with the ever-growing supervillain threat. Even sweet kitten Pepper feels the pressure of the times, and Jobelle Newbrey struggles to cope with her best friend and sister’s illnesses.

Based on the author’s true story, this e-book contains the fifth through eighth novellas of The PFA series. The Pretend Friend Association Parts Five through Eight are available separately as The PFA: Part Five- Journeys, The PFA: Part Six- Battles, The PFA: Part Seven- Heroes, and The PFA: Part Eight- Secrets.

Buy Links:

Amazon US- https://goo.gl/NLYg1X

Amazon UK- https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01LY8EVHM

Amazon Canada- https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B01LY8EVHM

Learn more about the PFA…

The Pretend Friend Association Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ThePfaABookForKidsWithKidneyDisease/

Hannah Reimers Amazon page: https://goo.gl/0Mi8ud