Lauren has lost her spark.

Lauren Page is an incredibly talented violinist. She's won more than a few competitions, and some even believe her to be one of the best in the country. She's been dubbed by many to be a child prodigy, as she's been playing since she picked up the instrument at three years old. But now, just a summer away from starting her life in New York at one of the most prestigious art schools in the country, she's having a difficult time finding that old spark within her. The music just doesn't feel like it did before. She's scared. Scared she's not good enough. Scared of being a failure. Scared to even try. In comes Conner, an amateur skateboarder and a not-so-amateur photographer, who literally falls into the most important summer of Lauren's life and tries to show her that she's everything she fears she won't be.

Crescendo is a story about friendship, family, and first love. But, more than anything, it's about a girl who is trying to figure out her life just before it really begins.

I Didn't Have a First Aid Kit

How did I come up with the idea for Crescendo? It started when I was in college. I was working a part-time front desk job at my campus tutoring/study center, and I was freaking out. I had a huge decision on my hands. I could move away from my family and friends to be with my long-term boyfriend in California. Or I could stay in Idaho with the people I loved most in the world and let the chips fall where they may. And on this particular day, I looked up just in time to watch a college kid completely wipe out on his skateboard. He was super cute, and he came in and asked me for a first aid kit, as he'd scraped up his chest pretty bad when he fell. I didn't have one, so I sent him to the commons and told him where he could find one. He went on his way, and I never saw or spoke to him again. But an idea began forming in my head. It started as a writing exercise. Just one chapter about a girl named Lauren. And then it turned into two chapters. Then three. And so on. And before I knew it, I had 41 chapters and a full manuscript on my hands. I spent years tweaking it here and there, going through several rounds of edits. And at the tail end of 2021, I decided I wanted the rest of the world to see it. So I serialized it and made it available on Wattpad.com. New chapters go up every Tuesday night.