So, I recently announced that I’m publishing a reimagined version of my first book she dreams. This was a project I definitely didn’t think I was going to take on, and honestly didn’t even think I was going to have the motivation to rewrite.

But I digress.

If you’re an OG who’s been around since she dreams was first published back in the summer of 2018, you would know exactly what it looked like and what poems it contained. If you’re not an OG, well a quick Google search will give you a bit of an idea how rushed of a project it originally was.

In all honesty, I was just eager to publish more of my poetic works that didn’t involve my Instagram feed or followers in any way, shape or form. It had been published with a poorly designed and low quality cover, with a photo ripped straight off of Tumblr. It also featured around 30 of what I thought were my best poems at the time.

It wasn’t until I recently looked at the proof copy that was made prior to publishing, that I thought: “Hmm, maybe I should rework and republish this someday.“

Well, that day has finally arrived.

I didn’t give much detail in my Instagram announcement as to what readers can expect from this “independently published” body of work, because I thought I’d save it for the blog.

So, onwards and upwards to a more in-depth breakdown of my third book (but second version of the first) when drifting, she dreams.

How is when drifting, she dreams different from the original she dreams?

when drifting, she dreams is a reimagined and expanded version of the original, published in July 2018. This version still features some of the poems published with the original, but I’ve also added poems I wrote prior to publishing and poems I’ve recently written. A lot of what you will read has probably been edited or rewritten in some way, to suit the needs of this reimagined version.

Fun fact: this version also features a slightly rewritten version of the first poem I ever wrote back in July 2016.

(If you can figure out which poem it is, I’ll adore you)

Is there anything new to when drifting, she dreams besides the additional poems?

I sincerely hope you didn’t think I’d republish my first book without putting a bit of a twist on it, did you?

If you did think that, I hate to burst your bubble but I 1000% did. In addition to the expanded collection of poems, I also played around with illustrations for each poem.

I mentioned this in my opening letter, but I would like to reiterate that none of the featured illustrations were made by my hands. They were all handpicked by me and edited into my manuscript, yes. But, I do not take ownership of the drawings or illustrations whatsoever. With that, I would like to extend again a massive thank you to all the artists who have shared their beautiful bodies of work onto the digital space, so that other artists like me can see and appreciate them as well. In fact, you can see the watermark of most of the artists’ works featured in the book.

(I saved all of them from Google, so I say “most” since not all of them contain the watermark).

The illustrations aren’t the only new addition though. When I published she dreams two years ago, I had included some of my favourite songs underneath each poem. I guess you can say they were “theme songs” to the poems that were featured.

I really wanted to honour that in this version and pay an ode to the original by including more songs. So in curating a brand new collection of poems, I also curated a playlist of songs for each poem. I won’t say where the playlist is located, that is for your eyes to find. I also didn’t specify which song belonged to which poem, I thought it’d be fun for you to figure out.

I will say that the playlist goes in chronological order of how each poem appears in the book. BUT some poems have more than one song, so beware. And if I’m not mistaken, there’s around 100 songs and approximately 80 poems (so you can try and do the math).

One more thing: I got incredibly personal in this version. You’ll see that when you read the book, but I also included a handwritten letter to myself detailing how difficult this process of healing is. I hate getting incredibly personal on such a public platform, but I thought this was a perfect addition to she dreams.

What can we expect before reading the featured poems?

Well, the synopsis for the original and the rewrite remain true to this day: this book is for the lost, the hopeful, and the brokenhearted. So expect a rollercoaster when you read this. Expect to get inside of my head, feel how I felt, and live what I lived.

I’d almost say there’s a poem and prose for everything in this book. There’s some really cute and romantic type poems, poems that touch on touchy subjects and experiences, sad and heart-wrenching poems, and extremely sexual poems as well.

This is not a book you want to buy for anybody under the age of 18.

So if you were thinking about getting this book for your teenage niece who’s into poetry, take extra precaution.

(I wouldn’t say this book is rated R, but it’s definitely not PG13 if you know what I’m sayin)

Your mom might not even want to read it. Or your grandma or even your auntie. But, there’s always the possibility that they might.

Where is when drifting, she dreams available for purchase?

when drifting, she dreams is be available on all Amazon stores worldwide for $7.00 CAD.

My second book (technically) the truth you took away is also available on all Amazon stores worldwide for $7.00 CAD.

Happy reading! I hope you enjoy all of what this reimagined version of she dreams has to offer you. And please, don’t hesitate to let me know what you think!

ED out x.

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Listen to: Still Don’t Know My Name // Labrinth