Nothing Everything Nothing – A Book Launch for a Good Cause

Cover image by Evan Wilman. Author promo photo taken by Sara Gratton.

Bullying touches us all at least once in our lives. A thoughtless comment from a parent, a petty remark from a classmate, a bad encounter with a co-worker – these are the mildest forms of bullying. For some people bullying is something they cannot escape. It is constant belittling from one or both parents. It is constant torment from peers. It is being ostracized, discriminated against, or sabotaged in the work place on a daily basis.

Constant. Deliberate. Intended to insult and hurt the victim while making the instigator feel ‘big’.

Bullying doesn’t go away. Even when you reach a point where no one in your life is really harassing you any longer the affects of bullying can make life difficult. You feel socially awkward. You are wary of new people for they may be bullies. You are self-conscious. That’s if you survive the bullying.

Poster designed by Andreas Ganz. Book cover image provided by Evan Wilman. Photography of author promo picture by Sara Gratton.

Bullying isn’t a joke. Suicide isn’t a joke.

I have learned a lot about suicide while researching for this book. I have learned that so many things we say intending to help people recovering from suicide attempts are really hurting them. I have learned that this isn’t something that is ever fully overcome. I have learned that there is an immediate, ongoing, desperate need for trained individuals who know how to help and who are easily accessible.

That is why I made this book about more than just me. This isn’t about money. This isn’t about fame. This is about teenagers. This is about being aware of the power social media has. This is about understanding suicide. This is about being aware of what you are saying and how it affects people. This is about supporting a cause that is out there trying to help teens in crisis.

There are so many groups out there: Big Brothers and Big Sisters, YM/YWCA, Kids Help Phone and other crisis hotlines and chat groups, CFS and CPA, and many many more.

I chose Kids Help Phone because they are Canadian, because they work hard to be there 24/7 for all youth in any crisis, and simply because I believe in their mission. I want to raise awareness so things get better for teens. And I want to raise money for Kids Help Phone so they can make things easier for teens.

This book isn’t about me. This book is about my cousin, Marlee, and how she is fighting to stay positive even when she feels like cutting. This is about her friends and family and foster mother, all of whom are trying to build her up while the world tries to tear her down.

This book is for every teen who has ever felt like there was nothing left to live for.

Show your support for our teens. Reblog this post. Reblog my other posts about teen suicide. Write your own post about depression and suicide. And if you want to help me raise money for Kids Help Phone, then please, buy a copy of the book. It just received a five star review – you can find it on Good Reads. (And that’s all the self promotion I’m indulging in today)

Let’s get the anti-bullying conversation started. Let’s stand up for our teens.

Nothing Everything Nothing Goes Live

No one in Molly’s life expected her to pose for topless photos. During spring break Molly meets a charismatic older boy and suddenly she is skipping classes, drinking beer, fighting with her mother, and sneaking out of her house at night. No one but Lance matters – not Molly’s family, and not Brandon, her life-long friend. Anyone who voices concern about Molly’s new lifestyle is driven away.
When Molly refuses to let Lance sweet talk her out of her virginity, pictures that were supposed to be private go viral. Molly’s reputation is in shambles. Lance wants nothing to do with her, insults her, and refuses to take the photos down. Complete strangers are approaching her online, and in her local corner store, asking for sexual favours.
Molly is faced with a painful choice – face the humiliation alone, or end her life and never have to feel the sting of rejection again.

Nothing Everything Nothing is live and available for sale. Get your copy in print, or for all e-readers from Amazon, CreateSpace, SmashWords, and (within the month) Kindle and the iBook store. I’ll post the links at the end of this entry.

Half of the royalties from every book sold between now and the end of November will be donated to Kids Help Phone. That’s between $0.50 and $2.00 per book, depending on the format and distributor.

If you can’t buy a book there is more you can do to help.
* Join the e-book launch on Facebook on October 28th, all day. There will be giveaways so you may just win a copy!
* Invite your friends to the launch.
* Reblog this article.
* If you live in Southern Manitoba you can contact me for promotional posters for the live launch.
* If you live in Southern Manitoba you can attend the live launch on November 27th at the Transcona Library from 5-8pm. Bring a friend or 3!
* If you have friends or family in Southern Manitoba tell them about the launch.
* Tell your librarian (public or school libraries) about the book and give them the link to the paperback. Request a copy for your library.
* Add the book to your “Want to Read” shelf on Good Reads.
* Add the book to your Amazon wish list.
* Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Amazon’s Author Profiles, and Good Reads.

At the end of November there will be a blog article listing everyone who advertised, reviewed, and shared. As well, all the fundraising numbers will be made public.

This book is for everyone. It is for teens who have been bullied, whether they’re still teens, or they’ve grown up. This is for teens suffering from depression or contemplating suicide. This is for teens who have attempted suicide. This is for adults dealing with teenagers in these difficult situations. This is for adults used to be teens in these difficult situations.

This is not a book about “I’ve got it worse”. This is a book about “you are not alone”. This is a book about hope, not about “get better already”. This is a book to raise awareness and understanding, not to judge or accuse.

This is a dark book with a hopeful ending. This is about weakness and strength. This is about trying and not always succeeding.

Thank you for helping me raise awareness. Thank you for helping me reach out to people. Thank you for helping me continue the conversation about mental health and bullying.

Here are the links:
Facebook Author Page: http://www.facebook.com/schreyerauthor
Twitter: @CasiaSchreyer
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00OW5FSQK
Facebook E-book Launch event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1489327034668181/?sid_reminder=5553758846805082112
Facebook Live Launch event: https://www.facebook.com/events/788296274561994/
Amazon E-book listing: http://www.amazon.ca/Nothing-Everything-Casia-Schreyer-ebook/dp/B00OVGJESS/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1414364385&sr=8-9&keywords=Nothing+Everything+Nothing
Smashwords E-book Listing: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/487516
Amazon Paperback listing: (not yet linked through)
Create Space Store (Paperback): https://www.createspace.com/5065657
Kobo and iBooks will be linked through by the end of the month

You can also search for me on Good Reads.

Nothing, Everything, Nothing – Update

I finished my novella at just under 40k and sent it off to a close friend for a good read through. I was so pleased with the response that I have to share it here:

Dearest Casia, I have read this now 3 times and am having a terrible time editing it … to be honest having suffered from depression for a great deal of my life I didn’t feel that the severity of the angst of a teen confronting this illness was adequately relayed. I had to put it down and really lay aside my own experiences and reread it coming form the prospective of a teenage girl living in the time of Facebook. I am always astonished by your writing, the characters are really engaging, the conversations so real sometimes I forget we are in a book going somewhere. I find myself wanting to get to know more about who mom, or Marlee are as individuals, sometimes even more than I am about where the story itself is going. If that says anything at all it is that you need to be writing novels. you need a much broader canvas. In the end however it feels like an outline, like there is a deeper darker story here, as a reader I felt denied. As a friend I can tell you this is the hardest topic to write about, I have not succeeded. I think that takes a courage and vulnerability I am not graced with. After reading your story I found myself incredibly upset over Rehtaeh Parsons and Megan Meier (again) and outraged at the number of similar stories. This is why its important to write about. Spell and gram check says its okay… you seriously don’t want me checking that

As you can see, not exactly a glowing “Go publish that puppy” sort of review, but it may be the most helpful set of comments I’ve ever received. Taking the first comment to heart, I was worried that the experiences, and there for the depth of the suffering, of the main character were rushed. That ties in to the next critical comment – that it felt like an outline and that it should be longer.
Well, there’s something I can do about that and I’ve spent days contemplating and outlining and I think I have a better grasp of the story now. I’m not yet ready to edit it, there is more I want to consider and work through before I tackle the story itself, mainly the bulimic best-friend sub-plot, but I feel confident that the story is now headed in the right direction.

As for the comment that there is “a deeper darker story here”, I think there is too, but I was afraid to write it. I was afraid of scaring off the reader. But if pussy-footing around the hard truth of this character’s experiences is going to leave the reader feeling denied, then I’m going to have to face the darkness and write what needs to be written.

There is a quote for writers, something about “killing your darlings”, which means not being afraid to cut out your favourite scenes, lines, or even characters, if they serve no purpose in the story. There will be some of that when I edit, I’m sure. But I think most of what I have is salvageable for the rewrite.

I’m glad I took the time to get a second opinion before releasing the novella (which may really turn out to be a full 60-80k novel) to the public. I don’t think I would have been happy with it, or its reception. Now I have the chance to make it what it can be, what it should be, and what I am capable of allowing it to be.

The Elusive Title

EDIT: Thank-you everyone for your votes. The title will be Nothing, Everything, Nothing.

As I have mentioned before, I am writing a teen/YA drama dealing with depression and suicide and the general nastiness of teenagers. Unfortunately I’m beginning to doubt the title I first chose. So, I’ve done a little brainstorming and have come up with a list of possible titles.

If you don’t like any please comment as to why. If you have a different suggestion I’d love to hear it.

Here’s the book blurb:

Self-conscious Marlee craves the attention and approval of her peers. When the boy of her dreams asks her out all her desires are handed to her. She starts stepping further outside her comfort zone to keep her grasp on the popularity that has befallen her. But is she really on the fast track up the social ladder? Or is she about to find her life out of her control?