![\"\"](\"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Vinnie-Grewel-STORY.jpg\")
<\/a>Vinnie Grewel, a biology senior on a premed route, poses with his recently published debut novel, \u201cThe Final Catharsis,\u201d available on Amazon.com. Grewel said he credits a UToledo class and faculty for helping him achieve this goal.<\/p><\/div>\n
Two years later, Grewal published his first novel, \u201cThe Final Catharsis.\u201d<\/p>\n
The biology senior on a premed route said he always felt like his career path was predisposed.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy parents always wanted me to be a doctor, so I decided to go down this track,\u201d Grewal said. \u201cBut when I got to college, I took time to think about it and I realized, I want to do it for myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grewal, who\u2019s from Williamston, Michigan, said the turning point in his fascination of the medical world occurred while he was on a trip to California, during which he shadowed a cardiologist.<\/p>\n
\u201cI fell in love with it there,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was a great environment, she was so passionate about visiting patients, and I love how she taught the EKGs and echocardiograms. Everything about the heart is so fascinating to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
During this time, Grewal also undertook another journey of self-discovery: an adventure in writing a novel that would take 20 months to complete.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy whole life has been very science oriented,\u201d he said. \u201cMy friend gave me John Green\u2019s book and I read it all in one day. That Saturday I was so engrossed in the story, so captivated.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really had such a big impact on me and made me so curious of other art forms. I started engrossing myself in any kind of subjective experience that makes people feel something.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ideas of love, loss, guilt and fear of death swirled around his mind for months, and when Grewal took a philosophy class at UToledo, he said he began to find some order in the chaos of his existentialism.<\/p>\n
The professors in the department of philosophy and religious studies helped Grewal throughout his journey.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey really opened my mind to a lot of different ideas of thinking way of viewing the world and learning.\u201d<\/p>\n
The content he learned resonated with him so much that Grewal decided to add a minor in philosophy to his degree.<\/p>\n
When it came time to begin writing the novel, Grewal didn\u2019t know where to start. An honors multicultural literature class in Spring 2021, offered by the Jesup Scott Honors College, gave him the confidence he needed to begin the writing process.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn that class, we had to write like 500-word essays every week,\u201d he said. \u201cThat class really taught me, \u2018Oh, I can write consistently and like a lot all at once,\u2019 so that really prepared me for that kind of writing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grewal also credits his English composition and science classes with aiding the more technical and critical thinking aspects of writing.<\/p>\n
The day after he finished classes in the spring of 2021, Grewal got to work.<\/p>\n
His goal? To use writing as an outlet to explore ideas of pain, loss and the power of art to heal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wrote a chapter a day the first three days,\u201d Grewal said. \u201cI realized, this could be a story instead of just writing out my thoughts and feelings. The cathartic release of writing really made me consistent, and I enjoyed telling a story with a narrative I kept building on itself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eighty days later, Grewal looked at the finished draft of his novel, his sense of pride was unmistakable; however, he still had months of editing and formatting ahead of him.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s a lot of steps,\u201d he said. \u201cEven though writing seems like the main part, and it is the most fun part, it actually took the shortest compared to everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n
The hard work was worth it when Grewal held \u201cThe Final Catharsis\u201d in his hands for the first time.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I felt the weight of it, saw the cover and touched the book, I was just in awe,\u201d Grewal said. \u201cI felt so emotional, I almost wanted to cry. It was just like this is everything I’ve poured into myself, my life poured into something meaningful.\u201d<\/p>\n