Three years ago, give or take a few months, I embarked on a journey that not only lead me to Wattpad but changed my life forever. While perilous at some times and incredible at others, all in all the month-long adventure that was my first NaNoWriMo truly changed me. Never before had I finished a project of such magnitude... nor had my pursuits amounted to anything legitimate. I was, in my own eyes, ready to create as I never had before, and that first surge of discovery lead to a chain of stories, quickly followed by my next NaNoWriMo the following year. What had once been a daunting task became my favorite time of the year, and I've been writing full-length novels about Dreamland, the strange brainchild I've never been able to give up, ever since.

The first NaNoWriMo itself was all that could be expected of a budding author with no clear direction. I was inexperienced, used far too many exclamation marks, had flat worldbuilding riddled with holes, and several characters who never seemed to pull their weight. It was by no means a bad first effort, but in the three years since I wrote it I've improved exponentially and the characters, too, have grown and changed so much that their new counterparts scarcely resemble the templates shown in their original story. For their sake as well as mine, I hope to retell the story in such a way that while much, if not all, of the worldbuilding is changed, the story retains the original heart and vigor of its predecessor. Here's to improvement, new beginnings, and familiar stories.

Enjoy the book.