Yorkville University’s Aimee Trafton published two books in 2023 – a young adult novella entitled The Misfit Crew, and Grief Journeys: A Prose and Poetry Chapbook, a personal account of grief and loss. 

Published in February by The Shortish Project, The Misfit Crew is Trafton’s first YA project focusing on teenage mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and grief.

“I wanted to write an honest depiction of a teen who struggled with an anxiety disorder, as I did as a teen, and what it really feels like, so I wrote it in first person through the eyes of the main character, 16-year-old Bay,” said YU’s Senior eLearning Specialist on the Digital Design Team, noting that the John Howard Society of Fredericton is currently using the book as part of their Youth Options Program.

 “I do author talks with each class once they have finished reading the novel, and I’m honoured that the teens in this program seem to really relate to this book. It seems to have really connected and resonated with them – and that, for me, is the best part of being an author.”

Trafton’s second book of the year was Grief Journeys: A Prose and Poetry Chapbook – a short book of poetry and stories of grief and loss inspired by her experience of losing several close family members, which she self-published in September 2023.

“I lost my brother and only sibling, grandmother, and mother all within a 15-year period, which was extremely painful, and I turned to writing to help make sense of my grief and loss,” she said. 

“The book is also about the undercurrent of grief that runs through families, invisible and rarely talked about.”

Trafton is now working on a couple of children’s picture books, which she hopes to publish in the very near future.

Learn more about Trafton’s projects on her author website at aimeectraftonbooks.com