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Local teen publishes e-book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble

by jmaloni
Thu, Jul 12th 2012 03:00 pm

by Alicia Wainwright

Emily Spina, a senior at Starpoint High School, has been writing novels since she was 13. Now, her dream of being a published author is becoming a reality, as her novel, "Book of the Legion," is currently available as an e-book on both www.amazon.com and www.bn.com.

"Book of the Legion" is the story of an unlikely group of teenagers who are thrust together by an old prophecy. They must then defeat a collection of demonic spirits known as The Legion. The action-adventure story follows them as they mature and grow closer to each other. Written with a Christian viewpoint, Spina notes that this tale is one that will appeal to "all ages," and to fans of many different types of literature. The book has a "little bit of everything - action, a little romance, and mystery."

The 30-chapter novel was her first full-length novel, and she already has the sequel written. Her sequel, "The Five," will be released as an e-book by the end of 2012. She is also currently writing the second book of a trilogy titled "The Machine." As a well-rounded writer, the upcoming trilogy will have some similar themes to her work in "Book of the Legion," but will also have a more "sci-fi" plot than her previous work.

"Book of the Legion" sells for $2.99 on both retailers' websites. And for those who don't own a Kindle or Nook, you can go to www.amazon.com and download a free application that will allow you to purchase "Book of the Legion" by Emily M. Spina on your Kindle Cloud Reader, PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Android, or Windows Phone 7. Just search "kindle store" "free kindle reading apps."

Spina, pictured, began writing at a young age, but before she put her words on paper she would tell stories out loud to her younger sister. "My ideas just kept getting longer and more complicated so eventually I decided to write them down," said Spina.

In her spare time, this young author is also a dancer and instructor with the Harmony Polish Folk Ensemble and sings in her school's select choir. She is also a youth reporter for NeXt in the Buffalo News and has a television program, a comedy variety show that she co-writes with her sister and is produced by her father, titled "That Variety Hour," on LCTV 20.

Despite adversities, Spina has continued working hard towards her academic and professional goals as a writer. Spina's aunt, Manya Metzler, notes that this spring, Spina underwent a difficult back surgery that she believed would make her unable to find a summer job to support her college career. Spina has continued to advertise her book and work on her upcoming trilogy, and managed to find a part-time job at Kohl's. However, Spina recognizes that she still has some physical "limitations at her job" because of the surgery, so she hopes to sell some more copies of her debut novel to further support her education.

The ambitious young woman will attend University at Buffalo Honors College in the fall. She plans to major in linguistics. But no matter what the future holds, she will always be an author.

She said, "I think that having a job outside of writing is beneficial to writers, actually. The more you see of the everyday world, the more you have to write about."

Clearly, Spina's courageous and creative approach to her future and career have benefited her writing, academics and extracurricular involvement. Purchasing the story can help support this young author pursue her dreams.

Additional reporting by Alex Muto.

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