After years of hardwork and dedication, Oswego State junior, Zachary Paquette, is now a happily published fantasy author as of Jan. 2.

“Legend of the Godkids” tells the tragic story of a long-ago war where humans’ jealously cast out people who had special powers. Years after the war, the hero, Luke Sky, receives a letter inviting him to the world Trabachi, where he finds he has been gifted with great powers and he is the chosen one to bring peace to the kingdom.

Paquette has been working on the project for four years.

“I think the idea of someone with superpowers, who could control fire, came to me first and then it kind of built around that,” Paquette said. “It was kind of just spontaneous how he came [about]. I thought of him and I thought of where he could be and where would it make the most sense for him to be in and it built off of that.”

The idea to write came to Paquette when he was grounded from television and video games.

“I made my own TV. That’s literally how I started writing and I’ve been writing ever since because it is so much more fun,” Paquette said. “I wanted to create my own world instead.”

Originally a zoology major, Paquette found his calling in the creative writing major last year and is loving it.

Like many writers, Paquette encountered some obstacles while writing his novel.

“I think really the worst thing looking back was making everything flow together, making it all make sense,” he said.

Paquette was motivated to write his novel by both his family and friends. One friend in particular made sure to read every single page as Paquette was writing.

“I wanted to write something he would like,” Paquette said.

Not only is “Legend of the Godkids” available on Amazon, it is also available at the Barnes & Noble near Paquette’s home on Long Island.

“It is actually sold out there right now,” said Paquette. “That’s crazy, especially considering now it’s not just my friends and family. Other people are now starting to get interested in it which is really cool. I put my email in the back and somebody’s already messaged me ‘I love your book.’”

Paquette offered some words of advice for his peers.

“If you’re interested in writing, just get it out there,” he said. “There are plenty of ways to get it out there [like] wattpad.com. Just having somebody else read it can be really motivating.”
Paquette is working on the sequel to “Legend of the Godkids” and readers can expect it soon.