Before Brianna Lopez turned 19, she decided to make a written record of her experiences during her last year as a teenager. In doing so, she decided that she wouldn’t hold back from sharing the ups and downs, the happy and sad times, the darkness and the hope she felt on the cusp of adulthood.

Through a combination of prose and poetry, Lopez, now 20, and a college junior in Miami who is majoring in professional writing, has self-published a collection of those experiences in a book entitled, “the nighttime series: a collection of poetry and short stories” (author’s punctuation). Lopez said she made the stylistic decision to write without capitalizing words because the emotions she went through and which she describes in the book made her feel “small.”

The book’s preface contains a revelation regarding its serious content. “There are some pieces that refer to self-harm, anxiety, depression and other things that might trigger someone who is in recovery from any type of mental health disorder, or might just make you feel sad or mad,” she wrote.

Throughout the 122 pages of the book, Lopez takes readers on a rollercoaster ride of emotions and reactions. Sometimes, it is autobiographical, but she also uses fictional writing to reveal some deeper thoughts and feelings.

“Even though I might have fabricated a story like [the] one about my cousin who passed away, I wrote a story about what I thought her life would be like,” she said. “The emotions there are real,” she told the Norwood News in a phone interview. “All of the feelings that I felt, all the things that I went through internally were the most real part of the book.”

Lopez, who was born in Manhattan and grew up in the Bronx with an older sister, said she used her writing skills as a way to deal with stressful situations during her younger years. Originally, she said she set a goal of writing every day as a 19-year-old, not only to create content for her book but also as an outlet to help her decompress.

“Writing has always helped me when I go through anxiety,” she said. “It has helped to calm myself down.” While the finished book doesn’t necessarily contain an entry from every single day of her 19th year, Lopez credits the setting of that goal with making her feel accountable as a writer.

Someone who has seen Brianna’s growth as a writer over the years is her father, David Lopez. She said he has been an encouraging influence, and has offered a unique perspective throughout her life. “Brianna was a very interesting child – spunky, snappy, witty – in a good way,” David recalls. “As a young adult, she would escape in her room, and just write and write and write.”

While Brianna’s writing process is mostly a solitary activity, both daughter and father realize that sharing her story can have an impact on others. “She wanted to put her words out there and help others in any way she can, and that was through her writing,” David said.

The book is not only the culmination of Brianna’s teenage years, but also marks an early milestone in her career as a published writer. She continues to sharpen her writing skills by completing internships at publications, and by contributing to her school newspaper in Miami.

“I want to be a writer in whatever capacity that is,” Lopez said. “I’m going to do another internship in my senior year. So, it’s really just providing me with real world opportunities where I have those skills in the future when I do go home to New York.”

Brianna is scheduled to graduate from college in May 2022. Her book is available on Amazon.com.