Stefani Vara says it didn't take long to come up with the title of her upcoming debut album.

"It's really about the dreams I've had and the trials and tribulations that I've been through to get to this point," Vara says of "Storybook Diaries," which drops Tuesday through Siri Music/Universal.

The album contains the breakup-themed pop single "Water," which has been playing on Sirius Satellite Radio for months and was featured on the Lifetime TV movie "What Color Is Love?" in January. A video for the single premiered on MTV earlier this year. Vara's second single, "Lately," recently was featured in an episode of "Gossip Girl" on the CW network.

"I've worked really hard for this, and to not know where I'd end up was a real risk," says the Baytown native. Vara moved to New York in her early 20s after graduating with a communication arts degree from a college in Colorado.

She declined to give her current age, citing the youth-obsessed entertainment business. "They're quick to label you," she says.

Vara wrote or co-wrote many of the songs on "Storybook Diaries," which tells of "hardships of the city" when the aspiring singer first moved to New York and would write in her diary while commuting on the subway.

The Mexican American singer worked as an executive assistant and did other temporary office jobs. She eventually found work modeling — she's been featured in ads for addidas and Southpole Footwear — while she continued to pursue a singing career. A chance meeting with Siri Music CEO Chauncy Jackson eventually led to a record deal and "Storybook Diaries."

"This is another checkmark of things coming true for me that I've dreamed of for years," says Vara, whose Texas ties remain strong.

Her family, which includes her parents, three siblings and "lots of cousins," still live in Baytown and the Houston area. Vara, who grew up in the shadow's of Baytown's Exxon-Mobil refinery, says she's looking forward to a planned promotional tour for "Storybook Diaries" that will bring her back to Houston.

"My family has been my true supporters," says Vara, who is excited about reaching out to young Latinas aspiring for their dreams.

"Hispanic girls are looking for somebody young they can have as a role model," she says. "I feel that I can be that person."