Sixteen-year-old junior Brooke Moorehead has reached one of her goals quite a bit quicker than most.
Moorehead has aspired to be a writer since childhood.
“She writes songs, and she wrote a lot of fanfictions. She has tons of journals in her room, full of different songs and stories. She has always loved to write,” mother Gemma Moorhead said.
Moorehead’s dream is to use her stories to help improve the world and give those less fortunate a voice. Her travels have opened her eyes to a world most ignore—a world of poverty, violence, and forgotten people.
“Mainly, as we travel most of the time, we take her to parts of the country where it has more poverty, and she see’s these kids who are unfortunate and sad, and sometimes when they go to school they get bullied because they are different. Seeing them and talking to them has made Brooke realize that someone needs to help them,” her mom said. “She’d go to school and sometimes she’d come home sad, and we’d talk to her and she’d tell us that she would see so many students get bullied and that so many of them were depressed. And then she said maybe I can’t help them physically, but I can write it. I can help them by writing their stories, and I can counsel them through it.”
As Moorehead approached the editing process of her book, she was able to rely on someone who had experience in the editing world, her father, and past professional writer at the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Eric Moorehead.
“I got my writing talent from him,” Moorehead said.
It took a matter of months for the Moorehead family to find an editing company willing to print Moorehead’s book: a book she put her heart and soul into.
“It was hard and long, but my parents and I were patient and it finally happened,” Moorehead said as she recalled the editing process.
“Brooke started sending her manuscript to different publishing companies, and at first she got turned down by at least three companies telling her that her book would not sell, and that she wasn’t popular enough to bring them money,” her mom said. “We looked online for other publishing companies, and we found through another publishing company, this company called Outskirts Press. “They basically looked through her manuscript and they said it might not sell, but this is a good education for kids now of days, and they went ahead and published it. They have supported her step by step and here we are today.”
“[My book’s] called My Wisdom Throughout A Year: Reflections From A Teenager’s Mind,” Moorehead said.
The book is about her journey throughout the year, and how she felt about certain events that she saw on television along with her personal experiences.
“I read her book before it was published, and it was about her life in a year, and how she saw and dealt with issues,” high school counselor Brenda Rogers said. “I noticed how in her winter months she was more down, and she kind of related her feelings on issues to each month.”
Moorehead has named Rogers as an inspiration to her, and a friend.
“When she told me she was writing a book, I told her to go for it,” Rogers said. “I believe that people should go after every single goal they have. If we go at life with a positive attitude and a smile, and that we show love and care for every individual no matter what, then we will leave a mark, and that it might inspire peace.”
Moorehead not only hopes to help people by giving them a voice in her book, but she hopes to achieve something on a grander scale.
“I hope to achieve an understanding in the world, more peace,” Moorehead said. “I’ve always dreamed of world peace, and I hope that I can do something to contribute to that happening one day. I believe that if you just keep on trying and don’t lose hope, you can do anything you set your mind too. You just have to believe in yourself. ”
