UNION, NJ — Princess Anhedonia is preoccupied with finding true love. But someone from her past has broken her heart and she is now unable to feel love. This is “The Story of Anhedonia,” authored by Union resident Reid Anderson.
“The way it reads, it reads like a fairytale,” said Anderson. “Some of the fairy tales like Mother Goose and nursery rhymes, there’s a lot more psychology in those nursery rhymes and stories then we were led to believe.”
The story is about people with Cluster B or other personality disorders and their struggles in life. “It’s sad. They have unstable relationships,” said Anderson.
Having to deal with mental health issues himself, Anderson studied psychology. His first book, “A Boy Named Reid,” is a true story about recovering from his childhood trauma when he damaged his hand handling firecrackers.
“I had to deal with people’s reactions to what it looked like and my struggle to be normal,” said Anderson. “But I made it through. I guess I’m a lot stronger for it. I studied mental health to navigate society.”
Both of Anderson’s books are self-published. He said, “I don’t have anybody over me, PR agents telling me what to do. Everything is from my own head. I fund everything myself.”
In addition to being an author, Anderson is also a musician who writes music to accompany his books, which he shares on his YouTube channel – which is growing astronomically. Anderson never realized what a great vehicle YouTube is, as the video and book promote each other, getting the message out.
“I’m living the dream, for sure,” said Anderson. “I’m enjoying myself. I’m reinventing myself. It’s becoming a whole new episode in my life.”
When Anderson had his accident, he was 8 years old, and The Beatles came to the United States a year earlier. He said, “All I wanted to be was an artist like my dad and play music like The Beatles. I didn’t think I’d be able to use my hand. I put the dream on the shelf.”
Putting his dream aside, temporarily, Anderson worked a day job. “You have to work, you have to provide for yourself and your family,” he said. “My parents told me, ‘Don’t quit your day job.’ They did not want me to leave to become a full-time musician. I listened to them.”
Nevertheless, Anderson kept at it, writing and recording the songs he wrote along with books. He took technical writing in school, but not creative writing. He said, “I just have a creative brain anyway. I guess it helps me in some way.”
Anderson is currently working on his third album, “Dreams.” There will be 10 new songs and some of them are already on his YouTube channel.
He encourages anyone who dreams of being a writer or musician to keep working on it. “It does take a lot of work,” he said. “My live performances – it does look easy. But there’s a lot of rehearsal, a lot of practice, a lot of trial and error.”
“The Story of Anhedonia” is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Check out Reid Anderson’s YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/@Reid.Anderson.
Photos Courtesy of Reid Anderson
