Very rarely does life go according to the plans one makes when they are children.

While many children dream of becoming an astronaut or playing baseball for the New York Yankees, reality often has more mundane careers in store for them. While many spend their youth dreaming of traveling the globe Indiana Jones-style, as adults, they find that paying the bills while raising a household of children to be its own adventure.

Some, however, never outgrow the dreams they made when they were still coming up in the world.

Just ask Dowagiac’s Adam Springsteen.

The City of Dowagiac employee and father of three recently accomplished a goal that has been on his radar since he was teenager: publishing his own book.

Earlier this summer, Springsteen worked with Pennsylvania-based Infinity Publishing to self-publish his first novel, titled “Awakening Dreams.” The book, aimed primarily for children and preteen readers, is now available in paperback through Amazon.com. E-book versions are expected to be released in the coming weeks as well, for platforms such as Kindle, Nook and other popular e-readers.

The novel tells the story of a child, Justin, who decides to explore a spooky and mysterious mansion in his hometown with his friend, Eric. However, when his friend does not show up, Justin decides to brave the adventure by himself.

Although he finds treasure inside the house, he soon discovers he is unable to escape unless he is able to overcome a series of trials.

Springsteen said that, in spite of the fantastic nature of the story, much of the elements in the story are rooted in things children are familiar with, such as bullying, confusion and uncertainty about the future, and even dealing with the loss of a loved one.

“Although the book is fiction, I think there is a message in it that speaks to people, especially kids, that you are not alone in this world,” Springsteen said. “You may face some difficult things in life, but if you hold on and keep going, you can make it through.”

For the lifelong Dowagiac resident, the path to become a published author was hardly an easy one to make.

Springsteen has loved writing since he was a child, as it was always a great outlet for his vivid imagination, he said. A story he had written in elementary school, titled “The Fat Rat and the Weasel,” was selected by his classmates as the best in the school, which allowed him to participate in the Young Authors program.

When he was 13, Springsteen decided that he wanted to one day write and publish his own novel.

In spite of his talent, he saw writing more as a hobby than a career, which is why, after graduating from Dowagiac Union High School in 2000, he decided to study accounting at Southwestern Michigan College. Shortly into his studies, though, Springsteen dropped out of college in order to take care of his father, John, who was suffering from illness at the time.

In 2009, the Dowagiac man returned to SMC to finish his education, and graduated with associate’s degrees in accounting, information technology and business.

It was during his second stint in college that Springsteen reconnected with his passion for writing while taking a creative writing course with professor Michael Collins.

The student wrote the manuscript for “Awakening Dreams” for a project in the class. Drawing inspiration from his own life — including his father’s death in 2004 due to cancer — Springsteen wrote the novel over the course of several months before turning it in to Collins.

“My teacher read the book himself and was highly impressed by it,” he said. “He even read it aloud to his kid.”

In spite of the positive reception, the completed novel sat on his computer’s hard drive for nearly seven years, as Springsteen could never find the time or money to pursue publishing it.

The Dowagiac man decided earlier this year to no longer keep his dream on the backburner, reaching out to Infinity in February to finally get the ball rolling on publishing the novel.

While he does not expect the novel to reach the New York Times bestseller list, Springsteen said he is proud that, after nearly 20 years, he can finally see his name on the front cover of a novel. Perhaps most important of all, he hopes his book can serve as an inspiration to others — especially his children, one of whom, 11-year-old Aiden, is turning into a promising writer himself.

“If you have a dream, don’t give up on it,” Springsteen said. “Just keep plugging away at it. One day, you will accomplish it.”