On July 30, University of Rhode Island graduate Dylan Hubbard (‘23) published his first novel “Steel Devotion.”
The novel follows characters Dawn, Zoey, Steph and Myah as they keep out of the way of some of their classmates who have taken “a particularly violent interest in them.” However, as they band together they form lasting bonds and learn about each other and themselves.
The novel is about people finding themselves, according to Hubbard.
The title, “Steel Devotion,” comes from the strong devotion the main characters in the novel have to each other, as well as a reference to a weapon used in the novel.
While the novel is characterized as a young adult novel, Hubbard noted that it differs from the traditional young adult formula that has gained popularity recently on apps such as TikTok.
The inspiration for the characters and plot of the novel comes from a lot of what he wanted in high school. He often wondered what it would have been like to have really strong, deep and loving friendships in high school and explored that through this novel.
Hubbard noted that while many will tell you to write what you know, it is equally powerful to write what you want.
“One of the things that all authors say is that if you want to write you have to read a lot and you have to write a lot,” Hubbard said. “So even at school, people don’t take the work seriously, but you are constantly writing, and I just had little ideas in my head where I was like ‘I wonder if I could write something that’s not even good, I just wonder if I can write something and finish it.’”
Hubbard said that in the early stages of the novel, he found there were a lot of scenes that were fun to write.
After finishing his draft of the novel, Hubbard submitted it to a few publishing houses online. His novel was accepted by New Book Authors Publishing and over several months, they communicated with Hubbard to work on getting his book published.
Over the next few months, the publishing company formatted and edited his novel while Hubbard revised any edits made and communicated with them on other facets of publishing a novel such as selecting a cover. A week after receiving the final proof for the novel and approving it, the novel was published and could be purchased.
After publishing the novel, Hubbard visited the high school teachers who inspired the dedication in the novel. He brought them a copy of the novel for them to enjoy as well, which they were very happy to receive, according to Hubbard. After the novel, Hubbard said his family went out and bought copies of the novel. While Hubbard is happy that the novel exists, he said he is dealing with it not being perfect.
“There are many errors in it, some of which are more embarrassing than others, but I’ve come to terms with that,” Hubbard said. “It’s also sort of a learning experience because, with this first one, I was getting very impatient near the end when I was getting the proof.”
The novel was sent to be published in April and was officially published at the end of July, he reread the novel many times looking for any and all mistakes and edits that needed to be made.
Now that he has finished his first novel, Hubbard plans to work on another one.
“I don’t see why not,” Hubbard said. “If they can accept one, they’re going to accept other ones. What’s important is to take what I horrifically failed at with this one and actually pay attention to it.”
As he continues to work on his future novels, Hubbard wants to grow as a writer and improve his skills.
Hubbard’s novel can be purchased on Amazon and other book retailers such as Barnes and Noble.