A Better Sky Somewhere

Author's Note/Trigger Warning

Before you start reading this story there are two things you should know.

1) I live in Haiti.

2) I didn't want to write this book.

I felt guilty for portraying my country in such a bad light throughout this story because Haiti's image has already been tarnished enough in the media.

The idea for this book came last year (2022) during a time when I struggled to finish my third year at university because the country went into two months of lockdown (not the kind of lockdown related to COVID-19). Violent protests were happening in almost every city. Most people were forced to stay at home to avoid getting trapped in the chaos that raged outside. 

Let's just say that I had time to think while being stuck at home... I didn't want to write this book but the story wouldn't stop haunting every thought that crossed my mind.  Finally, I decided to abandon other writing projects that I was working on to give this new idea a chance to come out of my head. This story needed to be told and as I worked on it I fell in love with it.

This story itself is fictitious but some events describing the social conjuncture of Haiti were either taken directly from reality or inspired by events that happened in this country. Sometimes I will be using Haitian Creole as well as French (the official language of Haiti) to name places, food, and other things that won't make sense if translated. However, for some Haitian terms used, I will put a brief explanatory note at the end of each chapter along with a translation for the non-English quotations at the beginning. 

I decided to write this book in English because it's always easier for me to find my writing voice in that language. My first attempt to write "A Better Sky Somewhere" was actually in French with the title "Un Plus Beau Ciel Ailleurs" but I kept doubting each line that I wrote until I finally decided to switch to English, then the story flowed naturally.

This story will be narrated by the two protagonists Norabel and Ethan. At the beginning of each chapter, I will put the name of who's narrating. 

The last thing I want to address is the triggering content of this book. This might not be suited for some readers so please be aware that the following themes will be explored in the story if you choose to keep reading.

· Mention/description of gang-related violence

· Mention of sexual abuse (not the main characters)

·Mention/Thoughts of suicide (not the main characters)

There might be more triggers that I will add as I keep updating.

Thanks for reading this far and if you decide to go any further in the story, I appreciate you wanting to give it a chance as well.

~Much love, Cassy.

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New Note: This story was first published on 31 January 2023 and completed on 7 July 2023. I've done my best to edit it and I hope this corrected version will be shortlisted in the Wattys!