This piece was selected as the winner in the First Chapters Contest, hosted in partnership with Penguin Random House and Electric Lit
Story
Rhea Dhar
(she/her) Mentee
Rhea Dhar is a high school student who enjoys reading obsessively, skateboarding, rollerblading, and writing in every moment in between, whether it be formally preserved on a document, scribbled on a crumbled napkin, or inked faintly with a ballpoint pen along her forearm. She is the co-author of the middle grade fantasy Element Island: Secrets and Smoke.
Artist‘s Statement
I write primarily to preserve my sanity and secondarily to entertain. Most pieces feature either moralistic overtones or social themes, while some are purely silly. I draw inspiration from the ordinary and, fueled by black tea and endless Spotify playlists, regularly dive into internet rabbit holes which are simultaneously productive and horrid acts of procrastination.