Paige Seburn
Niagara Now/The Lake Report

While local author Sharon Frayne’s latest book was borne from the seed of a frenetic 72-hour writing contest, it comes from a deep desire to encourage young people to perservere in what they’re passionate about — in spite of the sting of failure.

With her critically acclaimed novel, “The Sound of a Rainbow,” published last year, Frayne captivated readers with a story exploring the impact of toxic social media on a talented teen — and her inspiring comeback.

Her story follows a young girl who faces a public failure on a televised talent show and learns resilience through unexpected friendships at the performing arts camp her parents enroll her in to help her bounce back from her funk.

Frayne’s goal was to write something that would connect with kids right now, she said.

“I would see kids, who were great talents, getting to certain points of success. Then, once they’d receive feedback, it would either really build them up or it would knock them down,” she said.

“So, it’s sort of the uplifting story of rehabilitation.”

Frayne greeted fans at the Chapters/Indigo at Fairview Mall on Sept. 21, signing copies of her book for readers.

This was her second appearance at the store, following a successful signing in August, which prompted the store manager to invite her back.

Creating “The Sound of a Rainbow” was a journey for the author.

She entered a 72-hour writing contest in Huntsville, organized as a fundraiser for adult literacy.

As a former high school English teacher, she said the experience felt fitting. During the marathon, she stayed at the facility for 72 hours, striving to stay awake while writing.

Much of the book’s story had been in her mind, but some ideas emerged during the writing process, she said.

After completing the contest, she submitted her manuscript to a panel of judges and, a few months later, received the exciting news she had won.

The prize included sending her manuscript to Canadian publishers and agents for consideration.

“Normally, when that happens, it’s like a ‘Good job!’ kind of thing. But then, a few months later, the publisher got in touch with me and said, ‘We want to publish your novel,'” said Frayne.

“It was a thrill. A total thrill. That was the big jumping off point. Trusting myself with 72 hours of non-stop marathon writing—which was really, really hard. Then, leaping from that to actually winning and being published. It was a tremendous journey for me,” she said.

The novel was picked up by CBC as a recommended book for young adults and recommended as a book to read twice through their cycle of advertising.

Then, it got picked up by a bunch of other big Canadian reviewers, saying it was authentic, real and great for kids, said Frayne.

Cari-Beth Kernahan and her children, Charlotte and Isla, stopped by the Chapters/Indigo store after some casual shopping and were drawn to Frayne’s colourful display.

“It hits home with the age group,” said Kernahan. “Once she started telling the story, I knew it would be a really good thing for my kids to read.”

Charlotte said meeting an author in person and getting her book signed was a cool experience.

“I hope you enjoy the book, because I wrote it for girls just like you,” said Frayne, as they walked away excited for their next read.