Hey, guys! Curses and Blessings is a short story I wrote, based off my horseback riding experience at Grove Station Farms itself. It's a bit out of my comfort zone, for I do not write too many stories like this, but I really wanted to try. The inspiration came from when a horse almost kicked me in the farm's paddock. For a few months after that, I was scared to be around horses, but I found a way to overcome my fear. Sometimes the best way to overcome fear is to fight fear itself. To this day, I still love horses, and I really wanted to write a story about them.

        Stella was the name of one of my first riding instructors. The story originated from an idea I had in middle school that I wrote down. I took a look back at it and decided to try the story again, as a more experienced writer. The premise is the same, but now it makes a little more sense and the lesson is a little more fleshed out. This piece is short, yes, but I think it's important for anyone who suffers from PTSD. I want my readers to understand that you must find a way to move on and live the life you were meant to live. There are always going to be bumps in the road; you just have to find a way over them.

        I struggled a little bit with the "telling" aspect in this story, so I'm wondering if I can have some thoughts on how to fix that. I know a lot about horses, but I think I went into too much detail about the sport. Of course, that may just be me, but I would love it if you guys could give me some suggestions on how to improve it!

        Curses and Blessings is dear to me. I hope that I am able to share my joy of writing it with y'all. Enjoy!

- Victoria/Viktoria

Wattpad Accolades:

🥉 3rd place in the Guilded Raven Awards 2021 Short Story category.

⭐ Featured on @ContemporaryLit | Contemporary NA/YA Reading List (January 27th 2023).