The Classix

19 Years of Life. 2 Years of Famoux.

Hey, Wattpad. I'm writing to you from a pretty little balcony at my grandmother's house. It's the morning of my nineteenth birthday.

Just like I oh so currently am, I was quite emotional the last time I made a post like this, which was one year ago on my eighteenth birthday. As you might've noticed in excess throughout Famoux, eight is my favorite number, and as I was writing to you then I was incredibly nervous about what the year eighteen could bring.

And you know what? Everything this year brought me was a direct result of your support. Reflecting on what's happened, I am never going to stop feeling positively lightheaded with gratitude. I am indebted to you for the rest of time.

Because of you, I became a published author through Imagines. Because of you, I was invited to Wattpad's headquarters to hang out and do a book signing beside some of the most talented people I've ever met. Because of you, we went from 600,000 reads to a grand total of 2,300,000 between Famoux and Classix. (That's an increase of 1,700,000 reads this year!!!!) Because of you, Famoux won a Watty Award and was voted number 10 in the Book Of The Year contest. Because of you, I've gotten to promote films like The 5th Wave and Pride + Prejudice + Zombies, and even got to speak as Wattpad's teen representative for a webinar with the Young Adult Library Services Association. My head is spinning writing all this down. What a year. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

When I was 13 years old, right around the time I first started formulating new plans to turn Tiffany Box into what is now Famoux, I wrote an entirely different novel. It was a spinoff of Romeo and Juliet, set in the present day, about Romeo's valiant quest to win Juliet back after she falls in love with a high school quarterback. It was titled For Both Are Infinite, after my absolute favorite quote from Shakespeare's play. I can recite it by heart:

My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep. The more I give to thee, the more I have, for both are infinite.

Basically, Juliet is telling Romeo in this quote that her generosity and love toward him is as limitless and as deep as the ocean. And, even better, the more love and generosity she gives him, the more she ends up having, for both are infinite.

That quote quite honestly describes me talking to you. Here I am, writing to you from a balcony like Juliet yelling down to her Romeo. My love, my bounty, my complete gratitude about what you have made possible is infinite. Always has been, always will be.

All I want out of this year is for you to accomplish something amazing. I want this nineteenth year of mine to be your year too, and I'm going to be thinking of you and rooting for you the whole way. That being said, please set (or remember & reiterate) a goal today. Please plan it, think it up well, and let me know about it.

If you're starting a story, tag me so I can read it. If you're writing songs or posting music somewhere, tweet it to me (@kassandra_tate) or message my Wattpad inbox so I can have a listen. If you're painting, or sketching, or sculpting, send me pictures. If you're blogging or vlogging, let me know so I can read or watch. If you're starting a business, maybe an Etsy shop, send me the link so I can buy something and put it in my dorm when I get to college.

Bottom line, I want to be a witness to the creativity and hard work that comes from your beautiful mind. I want to support you like you've supported me.

ALSO: July 20 is sorta in the middle of the 2016, so I'd love you to give yourself a mid-year, one word resolution. Mine in 2014 was "Fearless," hence me taking a chance and posting Famoux for the first time. In 2015 it was "Mettle." (Google definition: "a person's ability to cope well with difficulties or to face a demanding situation in a spirited and resilient way.")

This time around my resolution is "Nonstop." (You could say I wanna write like I'm running out time as a nineteen year old, huh, Hamilton?)

Please come up with your own resolution right now. Something small enough to doodle when you're bored or repeat to yourself when you need it. It's great to have! You can comment that word here if you'd like so I can randomly post it on your profile sometime this year. (Say you choose something like "Gratitude" for your word. You're gonna be minding your own business, click into Wattpad, and see a notification from me going, "GRATITUDE!!!!!!!" How fun.)

To conclude, thank you for everything. I go back to July 20, 2014 constantly in my head––back to the time when I was sitting at that little wicker chair in my house trying to decide if I should post the preface of Famoux or if it'd be a lost cause. I can't imagine what life would be like if I decided not to post that day.

Infinitely,

Kassandra.