Flying without wings is inspired by my experience as a volunteer in a cancer hospital. I met children who, despite being strung by the constraints of cancer, still remained positive and
made the best out of their situation. I was awe-struck by their resilience; I felt like they were flying even though cancer had clipped off their wings . thus the title.
As a child I always dreamed of writing a book. A dream which hadn’t materialised until now. When it came to choosing my final MYP project I was certain that I wanted to write a book.
I felt strongly about chronic and terminal diseases, because many of the people around me were subject to diseases like Cancer, Autoimmune diseases, etc. I saw that they not only
suffered as they battled with the disease, but also struggled to get other people to understand what they were going through. As a result I decided to narrate the story of a young girl going through a disease. I wanted to show the physical and emotional turmoil that a patient goes through, in the hope that we can better understand how it feels to be in their shoes, and as a result be able to help and support them better. The process of writing this book has been a milestone for me . This book took me on an exhilarating journey from understanding the dynamics of writing to an exhaustive research on the subject matter. It was a truly enjoyable learning experience. Having the constraint of a deadline was the only limiting factor while I wrote. Otherwise it was a thrilling roller coaster ride. Time for acknowledgements. I would like to thank some people, who made this book possible. The first person I would like to thank is Mr Mohsin Hamid for taking time out and patiently answering my questions. Being an amateur writer I was clueless regarding the art of novel writing. Your guidance helped me understand the dynamics of writing a book and assisted me throughout the writing process. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Ms Saima at Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital for giving me a chance to be part of their summer volunteer program. I would like to acknowledge Mr Musharraf Ali Farooqi and Ms Sidra F. Sheikh for helping me understand the publishing process. Their guidance is much appreciated. Also, I would like to thank my Project Supervisor, Mrs Jane Barnes for her constant guidance and words of encouragement throughout these last few months. And also for editing and proofreading my work. Lastly, I would like to thank my mother who constantly provided support and pushed me to do more each and every day. Writing a book can be really disheartening when you face a writer’s block or fail to meet deadlines. My mom motivated me to overcome such challenges. . Living in Lahore, I felt it was appropriate to set the story III my home town where Cancer is a real problem due to the dearth of specialized hospitals for cancer treatment. I hope that you as a reader enjoy this story and are able to connect with the characters the way I did while writing this book. Happy Reading!
ZM
