By Correne Martin
Not many of us can say we’ve written a novel, especially as teenagers. Yet, Rachel Mergen, 17, a junior at River Ridge High School, can. In fact, Rachel has composed and self-published, via CreateSpace, three fantasy titles, the first when she was 13 and the second two at 16 and 17. A fourth will come out in March 2016.
“When I was little, I didn’t enjoy writing or reading that much. But I started writing song lyrics when I was in seventh grade,” Rachel said. “The vampire movies, like ‘Twilight’ and ‘Vampire Academy,’ came out when I was younger and this (her books) just kind of happened around then.”
Additional inspirations for Rachel have come from the band Imagine Dragons’ lyrics, the classic title “To Kill a Mockingbird,” and Amy Plum’s “Die for Me” series, which is based in Paris. “She’s one of my favorites. I’ve actually had conversations with her,” she noted.