Houston Author Aber Prieto Finds Healing in Writing and Mental Health Advocacy

Writing became Mexican American Aber Prieto’s sanctuary after dealing with stuttering as a child, and now the Houston author has put his life experiences into an upcoming debut novel that has influenced his mental-health journey.

“My stuttering, coupled with society’s ignorance about it, made me believe that if I couldn’t speak ‘correctly,’ I shouldn’t speak at all,” he says. “Writing became my sanctuary, a place where I could weave thoughts and ideas fluidly.”

Growing up in a religious conservative home, it was reading that provided Prieto with a sense of escapism.

“Fictional books were seen as a sin in my home, believe it or not,” he says. “I remember sneaking books under my bed and reading them while my parents thought I was showering. It was a release then, and it remains my release to this day.”

While Prieto has been a writer professionally, it wasn’t until recently that he decided to make the switch from writing for companies and other entities to creatively writing for himself.

“For the past few years, I’ve been working with popular publicly owned and private-equity beauty brands, writing copy for internal product education and reporting across multiple premier retailers,” he says. “Writing in the background for others often leaves me with a feeling I’m sure many creatives will resonate with—the feeling that if I can effectively translate another brand’s voice, imagine what I could do if I allowed myself to write for myself. That’s where the idea for my first self-help dream journal A Way Back I stemmed from—a way to give a voice to my innermost thoughts as a creative.”

In 2022, Aber, formerly known as Abraham, was diagnosed with multiple identities, specifically OSDD1b. His personality consists of fifteen clinical identities diagnosed by a psychiatrist and psychologist. This diagnosis, he says, cemented his advocacy for mental health and raising awareness for others, including LGBTQ individuals living with multiple identities and plurality.

“One day, while driving home from work, my life shifted,” he says. “The voices of people I now recognize as my community stepped forward. It was a life-altering moment. Meeting my system of alternate identities was like meeting strangers on day one of college, realizing that although we were all different, we were assigned to the same dorm—the collective mind. Our message is now bigger than us. We bear the responsibility of helping others, including members of the LGBTQIA community and those with mental-health struggles, to be seen and heard. We also carry the honor of giving voice to our system, validating their lives, dreams, and souls. Most importantly, we strive to give Abraham—the child his parents created and named—what he needs most: community.”

With his mental health in check, Prieto says he is using the experience as inspiration for his debut novel titled Something Happens in the Water, which is directly based on his experience since the OSDD1b diagnosis.

“Something Happens in the Water is the third iteration of a story I’ve been tossing and turning over deep within me,” he says. “The idea came to life years ago, before my diagnosis of multiple identities, but something always felt inauthentic. There was too much hurt and not enough healing, which felt like a disservice to any reader. After our diagnosis, we prioritized our mental health, which brought so much forgiveness and awareness.”

Something Happens in the Water is told through the lens of Daniel, who stumbles into the sleepy town of Bethesda, where he learns about the fleeting fame the city gained in the ‘50s when a local accident revealed the mystical healing powers of Sunny Side Lake. The catch? Only the first person to enter the lake’s mysterious waters when troubled could be healed. When a body surfaces in Sunny Side Lake, Daniel struggles to protect the secrets he’s also holding, including the child he’s harboring.

As he wraps up his novel, Aber hopes it can be a means of inspiration for others to follow their dreams, no matter what life throws your way.

“My biggest hope is that readers come in with preconceived expectations and are pleasantly surprised by the outcome,” he says. “My life, like many others, has been a constant contradiction between what I expected from the universe and what the universe actually gave me—grace and hope. Hope amidst brokenness, perseverance in the face of adversity, and the realization that there’s no proverbial hero coming to save me. All the answers I’ve ever needed, and will ever need, already exist within myself. Within yourself. If only we could shine a light on the words we’re too afraid to speak, we’d realize that we’re more connected than we ever thought possible.”

Beyond selling the book and getting it published, Aber says it’s a goal of his to keep writing and continue to be an advocate for mental health.

“We’ll continue speaking the quiet parts out loud—the toughest parts of our collective stories,” he said. “Writing is embedded in our DNA, and we’ll keep highlighting stories centered on Latinx and queer characters. We hope people can follow our journey as we dive into writing articles on topics that matter most to our community, including legislation and breaking down queer stereotypes. Through our writing, we hope to remind everyone that no matter what your life looks like—with all its beautiful colors and textures—you can not just overcome, but thrive.”

For more information, go to aberprieto.com.