Synopsis

15-year-old Emma Chan is an aspiring musician with her eyes aimed at the stars. Sure, she might not have won any notable competitions, but she isn’t “bad” by any means—unless you’ve met her easygoing and charming best friend, Naomi Lin, who seems to have the unique ability to accelerate Emma’s heartbeat.

On the surface, Naomi has her life together. Outside of being dubbed a child musical prodigy, she’s just another 15-year-old who likes coding, spending time with her friends, and reading celebrity gossip. But deep down, she longs to escape her life of expectations and build one that she truly desires, even if she doesn’t know what that means yet.

When the two friends team up to compete in a coding contest hosted by their childhood idol, their seven years’ worth of friendship fall into danger of being blown wide apart by deepening feelings, desperately hidden secrets, and the pressure of growing up. Emma and Naomi will have to adapt to the changing shape of their relationship, even if it means realizing that life can be so much more complicated than they imagined.

Set in contemporary Hong Kong, Stuck in Her Head is an honest story about cherishing loved ones, healing from mental illness, and, most of all, facing the ultimate challenge of the teenage experience—trying to be enough in a world that constantly demands more.

Amazon

Excerpt

Chapter 1: Musician and Wannabe

Emma

Emma peeked behind the heavy black curtains in the wings, the narrow gap of space revealing another girl onstage. In the sharp beam of light, her daisy-white dress—along with the ivory keys she was playing—shone starkly against the piano’s glossy black wood and the ebony curls in a ponytail coiling down her neck. Naomi Lin’s hands quickly jumped between two ends of the keyboard, linked by quick successions of scales. It was the same ten-page piece, brimming with thick arpeggios, that had taken Emma months to practise and twice as long to perfect and memorise, but Naomi made the music sizzle in the air, projecting rich, three-dimensional harmonic undertones that was filled the hall. Flawless, as always. Like any musician, Emma recognised this as the fruit of stacked hours of heavy toil, but it wasn’t hard to understand why Hong Kong news headlines dubbed this pianist a “prodigy.”

Deep breath, deep breath. But Emma clutched her stomach, trying to rub away the dull pain. Remember, you don’t have anything to lose. Even if you don’t win, all you’re missing out on is another fancy title to brag about on your resume. There are plenty of other opportunities out there.

But it wasn’t just about winning. She could feel her inner voice whispering from the darker crevices of her mind, the part that came most alive when the window blinds hung heavy and darkness barred the room from the outside world.

Focus, Emma. Now was not the time. The girl recited the things her music teacher, Ms. Yang, kept nagging her about: dynamics, articulation, pedalling, holding my breath during that particularly hard phrase, relaxed shoulders…

Waves of applause reverberated through the hall. Some people even stood up and whistled. Emma snapped her head back towards Naomi as the other girl bowed, before striding across the lacquered wooden stage towards her. Emma gave a mini thumbs-up.

“You did well,” she whispered.

Naomi pushed aside the red curtain. “Thanks, but I made so many mistakes. At least I got it over with.” She sighed deeply, rolling out her shoulders as if shaking off the stress. “Anyway, want to get ice cream after this? Mango?”

Just the thought of her favourite flavour made her gut flip. “I have a stomach ache right now.”

“Are you okay?” Naomi furrowed her brows.

“Yeah, I’m good.” Emma forced a weak smile. Despite the pain, the girl sheepishly indulged her friend’s concern. “If I drop dead, at least I won’t have to look at my score.”

“Emma!”

“Kidding, kidding. Just hoping I don’t crash in the middle of my performance. That would be a mortifying way to go.”

“Maybe it’s nerves,” Naomi offered. “But I’m sure it’s nothing a future full-time musician can’t handle.”

“If it ever happens,” she reminded her friend. Contrary to her words, though, she could see an image of an older her and Naomi sitting side-by-side, compiling music together on a laptop. “Not all of us have it in the bag already.”

The edges of Naomi’s smile sank. “Yeah, I suppose so.”

Did I say something wrong? Before Emma could open her mouth to speak again, the PA system blared: “Let’s all welcome our next competitor on stage, Emma Sanders!” Polite clapping ensued.

The girl glanced back at Naomi in the shadows, and saw her friend was grinning again. “Break a leg,” Naomi waved.

Emma nodded in acknowledgement. She smoothed out her indigo dress, then brushed the curtain aside.

Rows of red cushions extended into the black void of the auditorium, hundreds of lurking shadows waiting. At least neither her parents nor Ms. Yang were out there in the abyss to witness her failure. Only the faces of three strangers perched at the table below would be visible tonight, scrawling notes that would determine her fate.

One step at a time. Emma plodded toward the black and white instrument, ignoring the bile churning inside her stomach. She sat down on the black stool, and took a deep breath. In. Out. But the action had no effect. Even as the chilly air pricked her skin, making her hairs stand on end, she felt like a ghost, watching her body being pulled by invisible strings.

She could barely believe that she managed to make it across the stage. Had I bowed already? Yes, she had. Emma closed her eyes, and placed her hands on the piano. For a terrifying second, she thought her fingers would lock up and forget their roles, but as soon as she pressed the first note, the feeling vanished.

About the Authors

Kylie Wang is a Taiwanese writer who grew up in Hong Kong and is now a high school student in California. Her short works have received 30+ awards and publications, including from YoungArts, the Scholastics Arts and Writing Award, Paper Lanterns, and Bluefire. Her co-authored Young Adult novel, “Stuck in Her Head,” is coming out with Earnshaw Books in October. You can find her editing her latest short story or attending California Writers Club meetings in her spare time; or alternatively, on Instagram @kyliewangwrites.

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Liana Tang is a teen writer who has been published or is forthcoming in 60+ publications. She is enrolled at the University of Toronto and plans to study English Literature. She is a Writers’ Union of Canada member, has been nominated for Best of the Net and attended John Hopkins Talented Youth English program. Her co-authored Young Adult novel, “Stuck in Her Head,” comes out with Earnshaw Books in October. You can find her at @lianatang.yantung on Instagram.

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