A native of Redding writes a book about the struggle with sexuality and finding one’s own self

NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (WTNH) – A Redding native has written a book that became an Amazon bestseller in the Young Adult and LGBTQ categories.

“As a child, I grew up with a severe speech impediment. I had trouble speaking and communicating,” said Spencer Thomas, who fell in love with the written word as a result.

But his feeling of being “speechless” persisted even after a life-changing event in high school.

“When I came out as gay at 16, I had to decide who I wanted to be. And what did I want to do? Because I was at a crossroads of many things,” he said.

Thomas turned to social media.

“I started making videos and spouting nonsense online about my life, high school and growing up, and as I got older, my fan base grew,” he said.

This following grew to over 200,000 followers on his Tik Tok account @byspencerthomas.

He has received many messages from teenagers who feel alone and are asking for advice on issues related to sexuality and gender.

“I think the most powerful thing of all is the art of identifiability and how we can connect with each other by finding common ground,” Thomas said.

He decided to keep the connection going by writing a book, Goodbye to Boyhood, which Thomas self-published last spring.

The collection of ten short, fictional stories describes the early stages of adolescence through to adulthood.

“The feelings of isolation, the struggle with one’s own sexuality, finding one’s own identity,” he said.

Thomas is now 21 and achieving all sorts of goals, like giving a TedX talk in the fall, and he just returned from studying writing in Paris.

He believes in what he has to say and wants to help others find their voice.

“At the end of the day, I just want to share my stories and make people feel seen,” he said.

In the fall, Thomas begins his senior year at New York University. He is working on a second book.

Click here to learn more about “Goodbye to Boyhood.”