Dear Bully (27 page)

www.opheliaproject.org

Acknowledgments

Thanks to all of the brilliant, generous, and talented contributors in this book. When we started the Young Adult Authors Against Bullying group on Facebook, we had no idea how quickly it would take off. So, not only do I want to thank the anthology contributors for their time, patience, and creativity, I’d like to thank the hundreds of authors who submitted essays for inclusion in this book (and who will be featured at www.dearbully.com), as well as the thousands who joined our fight against bullying online.

A huge thanks to HarperTeen’s editors, Sarah Dotts Barley and Tara Weikum, for their guidance and wisdom. Thank you to our agents Elisabeth Weed and Edward Necarsulmer. I’d personally like to thank Jocelyn and Gloria Kelley of Kelley & Hall Book Publicity for immediately jumping behind this project and helping to promote it so that we received great media coverage, including Sheila Weller’s amazing feature article in
Glamour
magazine.

And finally, I want to remember the teens that were the inspiration for this book and who tragically took their own lives because they couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel: Phoebe Prince, Carl Walker-Hoover, Ty Field, and Tyler Clementi—to name only a few. This book is in your honor.

Bullying is not a rite of passage, it is not acceptable, and by working together, we can make it stop.

—Megan Kelley Hall

This book would not exist without two things: stories and bravery. Writers lived through the stories of this book. Stories of others’ suffering now inspired us and them into action. For many of the contributors here and on the website, it took immense bravery to share those stories. Thank you all so much.

A special thanks to the contributors, all authors of awesome. Thanks to Sarah Dotts Barley, Tara Weikum, Caroline Sun, and the entire Harper team for making this book a reality. It was a giant leap of faith and a huge squat press of hard work on their parts. Similar thanks goes to Edward Necarsulmer IV and Elisabeth Weed, both mighty vanquishers of meanness. I will be forever grateful for the passion and integrity you all brought to this project.

Thanks also to everyone who has ever survived. That includes the bullied, the bullies, the bystanders, and the heroes. We have a little bit of all of these in each of us. This book is for you.

And finally, thank you to Emily Ciciotte and Shaun Farrar, who taught me how to be tough.

—Carrie Jones

Contributors

CYN BALOG
is the author of the paranormal novels
Fairy Tale
,
Sleepless
, and
Starstruck
. She lives outside Allentown, Pennsylvania, with her husband and daughters. Visit her online at www.cynbalog.com.

LISE BERNIER
is a retired molecular biologist with a specialty in genetics. She has always been an artist on the side. “They Made Me Do It and I’m Sorry” is her first comic. She lives in Montreal, Canada, and is Cecil Castellucci’s mother.

HEATHER BREWER
is the author of the
New York Times
bestselling series The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod;
First Kill
, the first book in The Slayer Chronicles; and
Bloodbound
, a romantic fantasy epic. Heather likes moonlit walks, black nail polish, and the feeling of sand between her toes. She lives in Saint Louis, Missouri, with her husband, two children, and two very spoiled cats. Visit her online at www.heatherbrewer.com.

JESSICA BRODY
is the author of
The Karma Club
,
My Life Undecided
,
52 Reasons to Hate My Father
,
Unremembered
, and two books for adults. Jessica originally moved to Los Angeles to be a singer/songwriter, but soon discovered she had a better knack for writing novels. Now she uses her songwriting background to write and produce original soundtracks for her books. Visit her online at www.jessicabrody.com.

TERI BROWN
really did grow up in Alfalfa. She now lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and two teenagers. She is the author of
Read My Lips
. Visit her online at www.teribrownwrites.com.

CECIL CASTELLUCCI
is the author of numerous books for young adults, including
Rose Sees Red, Beige, The Queen of Cool, Boy Proof
, and The Plain Janes graphic novel series. She lives in Los Angeles. Visit her online at www.misscecil.com.

CRISSA-JEAN CHAPPELL
teaches creative writing and cinema studies at Miami International University of Art and Design. She is the author of
Total Constant Order
, which was a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age, a Florida Book Award medalist, and a
VOYA
Editor’s Choice, and
NARC
. She no longer wishes for superpowers of invisibility, though sometimes she flies in her dreams. Visit her online at www.crissajeanchappell.com.

MARINA COHEN
is the author of several works of fiction and nonfiction, including three middle grade novels,
Shadow of the Moon, Trick of the Light,
and
Chasing the White Witch
, and two teen thrillers,
Ghost Ride
and
Mind Gap
.
Ghost Ride
was shortlisted by the Ontario Library Association for their Red Maple Award. Marina lives in Markham, Ontario, Canada, with her husband and three children.

HOLLY CUPALA
is the author of
Tell Me a Secret
and
Don’t Breathe a Word
, which was inspired by her real-life abusive relationships chronicled in “Midsummer’s Nightmare.” When she isn’t writing her next novel or making art, Holly spends time with her family in Seattle, Washington. A portion of her author earnings goes to World Vision’s Hope for Sexually Exploited Girls. You can find Holly online at www.hollycupala.com.

ERIN DIONNE
survived junior high bullying and is now the author of
Models Don’t Eat Chocolate Cookies
,
The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet
, and
Notes from an Accidental Band Geek
. Her novels are about fitting in, figuring things out, and finding yourself. She lives outside of Boston with her family and dog, where she roots for the Red Sox, teaches English at an art college, and enjoys chocolate cookies. Visit her online at www.erindionne.com.

LUCIENNE DIVER
is the author of the Vamped series, which
VOYA
calls “witty vampire romance/adventure with plenty of heart and action” and Wondrous Reads calls “
Mean Girls
with fangs.” Either description will do. Lucienne is also a longtime book addict, a literary agent, a blogger, a mom, and a caffeine enthusiast. More information is available online at www.luciennediver.com.

CLAUDIA GABEL
is the author of the teen series In or Out and the mash-up novel
Romeo & Juliet & Vampires
. She is also a senior editor at Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books, where she acquires and develops fiction for young readers. She lives in New York City. You can visit her online at www.claudiagabel.com and check out her blog at www.claudiagabel.blogspot.com.

NANCY GARDEN
is a recipient of the American Library Association’s Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing books for teens. She is the author of the classic
Annie on My Mind
, one of the first teen novels to feature lesbian characters positively, among many other books. Visit her online at www.nancygarden.com.

JEANNINE GARSEE
works as a psychiatric nurse in a busy inner-city hospital and lives with her family outside Cleveland. She is the author of
Say the Word
;
Before, After, and Somebody in Between
; and
The Unquiet
. Visit her online at www.jeanninegarsee.com.

LINDA GERBER
is the author of
Trance,
the Death By . . . mystery series,
Now and Zen
,
The Finnish Line
, and
Celebrity.
Her books have been tapped as ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults and Junior Library Guild and Literacy Lab Selections. Linda recently returned to life in the Midwest after four years in Japan, where she served as the Regional Advisor for the Tokyo chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. She lives and writes in Dublin, Ohio, blissfully ignoring her husband, four kids, and one very naughty puppy. Visit her online at www.lindagerber.com.

MEGAN KELLEY HALL
, in addition to coediting this book, is the author of
Sisters of Misery
and
The Lost Sister
, two teen gothic thrillers that tackled bullying and “mean girls” way before bullying became daily news. Megan is a founding partner with her mother and sister of Kelley & Hall Book Publicity and has written for a variety of publications, including
Elle
,
Glamour
,
Parenting
,
American Baby
,
Working Mother
, the
Boston Globe
, and the
Boston Herald
. A graduate of Skidmore College, she lives north of Boston with her husband and her daughter. Visit her online at www.megankelleyhall.com.

KRISTIN HARMEL
, a longtime reporter for
People
, is the author of
The Art of French Kissing
,
Italian for Beginners
,
The Blonde Theory
,
How to Sleep with a Movie Star
, and the teen novel
After
. She has lived in Paris, Los Angeles, New York, Boston, and Miami, and now resides primarily in Orlando. Visit her online at www.kristinharmel.com.

When
NANCY HOLDER
was sixteen, she dropped out of high school to become a ballet dancer in Cologne, Germany. Eventually she returned home to California and graduated from the University of California, San Diego. A four-time winner of the Bram Stoker Award from the Horror Writers Association, Nancy has received accolades from the American Library Association, the American Reading Association, the New York Public Library, and
Romantic Times
. She and Debbie Viguié coauthored the
New York Times
bestselling series Wicked,
Crusade
, and the Wolf Springs Chronicles. Nancy is also the author of the teen horror series Possessions and has written many novels set in the
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
,
Angel
,
Saving Grace
,
Hellboy
, and
Smallville
universes. Visit her online at www.nancyholder.com.

ELLEN HOPKINS
is the
New York Times
bestselling author of
Crank
,
Burned
,
Impulse
,
Glass
,
Identical
, and
Perfect
. Visit her online at www.ellenhopkins.com.

TONYA HURLEY
is the author of the instant
New York Times
bestselling and critically acclaimed ghostgirl series, and
Blessed
, the beginning of a new trilogy. A writer for television and film as well, Tonya has created, produced, and written live and animated series for ABC, and her independent films have been selected for such prestigious film festivals as Tribeca, Edinburgh, and the LA Independent, and broadcast on IFC, the Sundance Channel, and PBS. Tonya lives in New York with her husband and daughter. Visit her online at www.tonyahurley.com.

CARRIE JONES
(the writer, not the porn star, and this book’s coeditor) has been battling bullies ever since they told her she talked funny. She’s pretty sure she still talks funny, but it hasn’t kept her from being an internationally bestselling author of the Need series or winning awards for some of her other books. It also hasn’t kept her from being an undercover prostitute, a church secretary, a police dispatcher, or a gymnastics instructor. Carrie is also the author of
After Obsession
, cowritten with Steven E. Wedel. She lives in Maine with two ridiculously large dogs and the rest of her family. None of them mind how she talks either. Visit her online at www.carriejonesbooks.com.

New York Times
bestselling author
SOPHIE JORDAN
grew up in the Texas hill country, where she wove fantasies of dragons, warriors, and princesses. Sophie is a former high school English teacher and her debut young adult novel,
Firelight
, is out now. Visit her online at www.sophiejordan.net.

LAURA KASISCHKE
has published several novels, including
The Raising
and two novels for teens,
Boy Heaven
and
Feathered
, and eight collections of poetry. She is a professor in the MFA program and at the Residential College at the University of Michigan. She lives with her husband and son in Chelsea, Michigan.

LAUREN KATE
grew up in Dallas, went to school in Atlanta, and started writing in New York. She is the
New York Times
bestselling author of the Fallen series and
The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove
. She lives in Laurel Canyon, California, with her husband and hopes to work in a restaurant kitchen, get a dog, and learn how to surf. Visit her online at www.laurenkatebooks.net.

JOCELYN MAEVE KELLEY
is a literary publicist and freelance journalist, writing for national magazines like
Glamour
,
Self
,
Elle
, and
The Writer
. A magna cum laude graduate of Emerson College, Jocelyn hosted and produced an award-winning Associated Press public affairs radio program that tackled subjects such as bullying, depression, and school systems in America. Visit her online at www.kelleyandhall.com.