Oak Harbor High School senior Brenna Tidwell will have something new to show off to friends and teachers this fall.

As of July, 17-year-old Tidwell is a published author of a poetry book titled “Bottled Up.” The book features poems on various topics that today’s young people face — including suicide, relationships, abandonment, physical and emotional abuse.

Brenna began writing poetry about a year and a half ago on her own and then later had to write it for her high school English class.

After being told by various people that her poems were written well, Tidwell and her mother Judy decided to pursue the idea of getting the book published. After a long search, they settled on PublishAmerica. The deal allows for Brenna to receive two royalty checks a year from the sales of her book.

“A lot of the things that I write about are things that I feel, stuff that other teenagers have gone through, or experiences that my friends have had,” Brenna said.

Brenna has lived in Oak Harbor since 1999 with her mom Judy Tidwell, who is a Navy Chief. Earlier, the Tidwells lived in Lisbon Falls, Maine.

“I am proud of Brenna. Writing is an art and artistic people run in our family. She seems to have a natural talent for writing poetry!” Judy said.

At this time, Brenna is working on another poetry book as well as a novel that she also hopes to get published.

Other than writing poetry, Brenna’s enjoys riding and caring for her three horses and hanging out with her friends. Her goals for the future include going to school to become a Veterinary Technician or to work with horses.

For more information about Brenna’s poetry e-mail kensgurl110304@hotmail.com