River Falls High School freshman Leila Dexheimer has done something many people dream of yet never accomplish: She’s written and published her own book.

“The Gold King,” written for ages 12-18 and published Sept. 7, is available on Amazon. The book description reads, “The world will crumble or thrive, and it all comes down to Orion, the Gold King. Tasked with restoring magic to a dying kingdom and making peace with the humans, Orion must unite the sorcerer orders and other creatures of magic. However, a foreboding prophecy stands in his way. Orion must find a way to save his kingdom and prove the prophecy wrong, but the battle with himself is much greater than anyone could anticipate. To save the world, Orion must fight his desire for revenge or risk killing everyone he has ever loved.”

When people read her book, Dexheimer wants them to feel the magic inside, how every character has a full range of emotions and feelings. The story isn’t just about fantasy though: It’s about the world Dexheimer sees every day, from her 14-year-old perspective and how to make it a better place.

“Multiple people have told me that my story makes them feel magical. After reading this your perspective on the world changes,” Dexheimer said. “More than anything I want people to see how many real-world issues it talks about. How it touches on the costs of war and how it can change everything. It also brings up depression and anxiety in a magical way.”

Dexheimer was watching “Merlin” on Netflix when she came up with the idea for her book. She said she likes to daydream and change the plots of shows to what she’d like them to be.

“My book has a lot of things from swords to sorcerers,” Dexheimer said. “It’s set in medieval times on a magical island. The plot is all about loss, finding yourself, escaping expectations, forbidden love, anger, and destinies.”

Many characters are inspired by people in Dexheimer’s everyday life, from her friends to her sisters.

“In the book, I have commanders who assist Orion through his journey. Every single commander is based on one of my family members,” Dexheimer said. “It’s a little way I can show I love and admire them. Though both of my sisters have moved away to college I can always read about them.”

The book contains 60 chapters and is 377 pages long. It took Dexheimer about two years to write. She said she purposefully made the plot crazy, with fear, sadness, mourning, anger, and joy.

“This story is packed with emotion and there is never a dull moment,” Dexheimer said. “Every curve and twist in the plot is made to make you feel everything happening with the characters. Someone gets betrayed, well now you feel like you’re stabbed in the back.”

Dexheimer has written multiple short stories and said the process for the book wasn’t much different. She wrote as much as she could as it came to her. She can write any time of day but enjoys writing in school because the noise helps her focus.

“I love writing with emotional music blaring in my headphones when I’m writing at home,” she said. “I fall into this world where I’m in control. The words just come and there is no stopping them. I get so distracted that sometimes my dad has to remind me to eat.”

While fantasy authors Holly Black and Leigh Bardugo truly inspired her, she found support and encouragement from her eighth-grade teachers in Blue House, who urged her to finish the story.

“My social studies and English teachers would always ask me how it was going. That’s the kind of thing I will always remember,” she said. “Even my teachers now at River Falls High School are asking me about it.”

When she was younger, Dexheimer wanted to be a chemist. However, that dream fell flat when she realized she wasn’t that good at chemistry. She found something she is good at and plans to stick with it. She chose to publish her book on Amazon so she could maintain creative control of her work.

“Amazon has a new thing where they publish books,” she said. “I reached out to a couple of agents and publishers, but when I went to meet with them, they wanted more creative freedom than I was willing to give, so it just doesn’t work out.”

Her dad’s cousin Renee Hammes provided the front cover’s illustration. Dexheimer said she was able to capture her story perfectly. She was understanding throughout the whole process and listened to Dexheimer’s wishes.

“Publishing proves to myself and other kids that we can do anything and now is no time to wait,” she said. “I’ve had so many of my peers come up to me and say that they want to publish, they just didn’t know they could yet. I’ve heard stories of people much older than me wishing they could write a book but are too scared to try. Anyone and everyone can do it! My old gym teacher had this quote in her locker room I think really resonates with this. ‘There are seven days in the week and someday isn’t one of them.’”

This young author, who is also a hockey player and makeup artist, wants to continue writing for as long as she can. She said she loves bringing new worlds to life and making people happy. She has so many ideas it’s hard to sort through them all. Her next book will have more romance in it and will explore the relationship she has with her two sisters.

“Here’s a little bit more about my next book. Alexa’s only job is to protect her sisters, but the only way she can do that is by marrying the tyrant king. Somehow she must keep her family safe, all while unlocking secrets about her heritage and the centuries-old war,” Dexheimer said. “This brings in abuse, war, anxiety, love triangles, and an amazing sister relationship.

“After high school, I would want to continue writing either as an author or a screenwriter. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll be the writer for your favorite show.”

She’s already well on her way.