Crookwell based author Elizabeth Egan's latest novel pays tribute to those people who grow morally stronger in the face of catastrophe.
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My Real Life: A Remade Man was published as an eBook on April 10.
"Writing consumes a lot of my time and I do as much as I can," Egan said.
"It can be frustrating but it gives me energy. I am thrilled when people like something I have written because it means I have managed to capture in words an idea or feeling and share it.
"I also write short stories, bush poetry and free poetry.
"Life is not easy to negotiate even when there are no barriers, and the process by which people successfully plot a course through obstacles deserves to be recorded."
The novel explores the human condition and the themes draw on her own life experience and observations.
"For several years, I worked at a NSW university providing academic services to students with a broad of disabilities.
"During my service, two medical students suffered traumatic brain and physical injuries after being struck by cars."
Neither student was successful in resuming their studies.
"A few years later, I drove past a derelict caravan site in the lower Hunter Valley at dawn and thought how dismal it would be to be stuck in such a place.
"The recollection of that place and the memory of the medical students fused, and the core scenario of the novel was born."
The book addresses issues that young people may encounter without warning or preparation.
These include: a gross change in heath and ability; an unexpected fracture in family relationships; isolation from the usual sources of advice; demands on moral integrity; encounters with people of totally different backgrounds; independence when one is ill-equipped to deal with it.
"Andy, the central character in the story, encounters all these calamities and, in his altered state, must draw on his deepest resources to cope."
It is classified as young adult fiction, but the author said adults would enjoy reading it.
Egan has also written and self-published a novel, Sun on Distant Hills and a children's book, Darcy, the Farm Foxie illustrated by Sally Wilson.
In June, she claimed second place for her short story Flower Power at the Henry Lawson Festival.
In the catalogue judge Narrelle Harris wrote of the piece, "there is charm, wit, a larrikin spirit and even redemption in this delightful story."
My Real Life is available as an eBook and costs $3.99:
