20-year-old releasing her second book

At the age of only 20, a young woman from Blumenort is excited to be launching her second book this week.

Julia O'Brien's Tales from Thais is a collection of short stories for Christian kids.

She says, "when I was growing up, I remember not being able to read Harry Potter. A lot of kids around me found that shocking. But because of the things in it like sorcery, dark magic themes, my family wasn't comfortable with it."

O'Brien said that she would often go to the library in search of Christian fantasy books but was disappointed in the lack of selection. That's when she decided to write some herself.

"When I was 14, I started writing my first novel and self-published that in 2015. It was a 90,000 word novel with around 350 pages. Then when I got into this program with Red River College, I had the opportunity to do a professional project. I wanted to write another book to bring kids more content - a world kids can invest in without their parents having to worry about what their kids are digesting."

Tales from Thais serves as a prequel to her first novel Tales of the Bonded: Fire and Ice.

O'Brien says, "faith is becoming your own when you're 12, 13, 14, or 15. You have to realize what your beliefs are, and what the beliefs of your parents are. You step into believing that for yourself. In my first book, the main character goes through that. She has walked away from her faith and has to come back to it on her own terms, not just the terms of her parents."

This second book is a series of three short stories, each about 8,000 words that are digestible and quick to read at any age. There are no magical themes in her fantasy books.

O'Brien says that she feels she can truly relate to her character Sterling. He is a silver wolf that can utilize telepathy who was created by Elohim to be a guide and protector. In O'Brien's first book, Sterling is trying to find his place and his greater purpose. "He was a lot of fun to write . . . A very interesting character. I'm very connected to Sterling."

Her goal is to write a book every single year. O'Brien hopes to have her sequel to Tales of the Bonded: Fire and Ice come out in September 2018. You can purchase O'Brien's books at jobrienbooks.com. It will also be available at McNally Robinson with the public launch taking place at 7:30 p.m. on February 2.