BSS Alum Victoria Gonzalez '12 publishes her first book

Fourteen-year-old Victoria Gonzalez hopes to have a career as a fiction writer.

She’s off to an early start with the publication of her first book, “Guardians of the Gate: The Disappearance of Code.”

“I’ve always been a writer,” Gonzalez said, “even when I was really little. I usually wrote stories about typical little girl things like princesses and fairy tales.”

Like one of her favorite authors, J.K. Rowling, Gonzalez used the initials of her first and middle names in having her book published. She thought V.A. Gonzalez sounded like the name of an author.

“Guardians of the Gate” is meant to be the first book in an adventure/fantasy trilogy. Gonzalez is working on the second book.

The book originated with a “strange dream” Gonzalez had.

“I took what I saw and wrote about it,” she said. The book involves the main character’s journey into the afterlife and her role in a struggle against evil.

“She has a lot of responsibilities,” Gonzalez said.

To find out more about Gonzalez and her book, go online to http://vagonzalez.com. The website includes information about downloading the book or buying a hard copy; people can visit www.Amazon.com as one option. Gonzalez has donated a copy of the book to May Memorial Library in Burlington for use in its local authors section.

Gonzalez has had her writing in the Times-News as part of the “Write On” section that highlights the work of local students, and she has been successful in both writing contests she has entered. She won a second-place award for fiction in a competition held by the Burlington Writers’ Club and was one of two first-place winners this year in the Martin Luther King Humanitarian Essay Contest sponsored by Elon University.

Having her work printed in the newspaper was a big step, Gonzalez said: “It definitely helped me build confidence to share my writing with other people.”

Gonzalez finished the eighth grade this year at Blessed Sacrament School in Burlington. She will soon start ninth grade at Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School in Kernersville.

Gonzalez is the daughter of Ramiro Gonzalez and Melissa Stephens. Her younger sister, Isabella Gonzalez, will be in fourth grade once the 2012-13 school year starts. The family lives in Whitsett.

Gonzalez said her sister enjoys writing and has also been in the newspaper’s “Write On” section.

Ramiro Gonzalez said he’s amazed his daughter’s book contains 100,000 words.

“At 14, I was playing basketball and just passing time, wasting my summers watching cartoons,” he said. “At 14, she’s writing a book and planning her future.”

http://www.thetimesnews.com/articles/fourteen-57028-year-publishes.html

Mike Wilder can be reached at mwilder@thetimesnews.com or 336-506-3046.