Letting go is the hardest part... but you have to look at it through their eyes and realize the pain you caused them is that same pain you feel now.
We have a society that is going through life not talking about what's really hard about life and trying to pretend like everything's great when it's not. As a result, people feel more and more isolated.
What would happen if people practiced openness and honesty? If people talked about their real challenges without shame or fear of rejection? My guess is that people would feel less alone and isolated. People would be willing to share more, and as a result, society would feel more connected to each other and their experiences.
There's this incredible pressure, especially on teens, to be perfect, look right, have the right clothes, date the right people, get into the right school, have the right home life, and so on.
I think about what I wish I had known when I was a teen and tween. I struggled with a lot of insecurity and self-doubt as a young girl and the side-effects of that were long lasting, well into my late twenties.
It may not always feel wonderful. but you're out there doing it. You're running while others are just walking. Or sitting around. I mean, come on - you're out there running, for goodness sake. You're to be taken seriously.
My goal in writing for teens and tweens is to help my audience feel inspired and empowered today, to find their voice today, to believe that they can truly design the life of their dreams...today. I mean seriously...why wait?
Once the initial excitement wears off and it's time to sit down to write, the authors are usually still very eager, but the reality of doing the work can be a little daunting.
All the authors who've ultimately published Louder Than Words memoirs have been very happy to be chosen and excited about the possibility of having their memoir published. Even though these books deal with serious, often painful, issues, in all cases the authors felt as though writing their story would be an empowering and healing experience.
I'd worked on a series of Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul books called The Real Deal for HCI books, which featured essays and poems from teens.Finding the right authors for the series has been no easy feat, mostly because I'm looking for a perfect blend of a teen girl with an interesting story or hook, fantastic writing talent, and the confidence to commit to writing a 30,000+ word book in a matter of months. It's a huge commitment and I recognize that, so the fit has to be there from all these different angles.
Teen readers can see aspects of themselves in the teen authors, which in a way, validates their experiences.
I think it can be incredibly powerful for a teen to be able to put their story out there for others to soak in, learn from, relate to. In some ways, it validates their experience, which for teens (or for anybody, really) is a pretty huge deal.
I'm a big believer in giving teens a voice and opportunities to share their stories and experiences.
The thing that got me through the worst of my teen years was running and the piano.
