For junior Macy Washburn, a single dream sparked in her mind. Now, her epic fantasy novel, Nixcentyr, is steadily growing into what she hopes will one day become a published trilogy.

“Basically, I had a weird dream one day, and I thought that would make a good book,” Washburn said.

That dream has since evolved into a complex story following three protagonists — Esme, Gordy, and Iyla — who navigate a world full of dangerous secrets, warring factions, and shifting alliances. At the heart of the story, Esme, a girl from the village of Morics, is marked as a Nixcentyr, a member of a persecuted group. Forced to flee after betraying her own brother, she meets Iyla, a resourceful thief running from a dark past. Meanwhile, Gordy, the grandson of the former Nixcentyr leader, is furious that he was not chosen to succeed his grandmother. Determined to claim the title, he sets out to hunt Esme down.

“It really is inspiring,” senior Maura Jaros said. “It’s pushed me to get back into writing again.”

While the story itself has transformed since she first started writing, Washburn has also grown as a writer. She initially planned for minimal worldbuilding but quickly realized the depth required for her novel.

“If you told me a year before I started writing that I would be writing an epic fantasy. I would not have believed you, because the amount of work that goes into an epic fantasy is insane, and I found that the hard way,” Washburn said. “Initially, I wasn’t going to have that much worldbuilding, maybe like 10 pages of notes. Now I have over 50 pages and counting.”

Washburn’s dedication to Nixcentyr has not gone unnoticed by her peers. Sophomore Evan Sherman, who first heard about the book through the school’s creative writing club, praised her commitment.

“She’s highly dedicated, insanely more than I am,” Sherman said. “I try to write, I try to do good. She’s on another level.”

Though the novel is still a work in progress, Washburn is determined to see it through to completion. Her ultimate goal being to find a publisher.

“I do desperately want to publish,” Washburn said. “Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen anytime soon, because I’ve been working on this for two years. It is still nowhere near done.”

For aspiring writers, Washburn offers one key piece of advice — consistency.

“Stay excited about it. Do not just walk away from the story and expect to come back into it,” Washburn said. “If you come back into it after taking a month’s break, you will have to reread everything.”

With her passion and persistence, her story is well on its way to becoming something readers won’t soon forget.