Louder Than Words Comes out TODAY!

Happy Monday!

I’m so excited to announce that the series of teen-authored memoirs I created and edited for HCI Books comes out today! Louder Than Words features three books written by three crazy-talented young women who share their personal, true stories and make their debut as published authors.

As part of the launch, next week we’ll be doing a 5-day online “TV show” that will be hosted on different blogs through Kyte TV. Starting Monday, August 10th, every night from 8-9 p.m. EST (5-6 p.m. PST), the authors and I will be doing a live videochat about the series and taking questions from readers. You can find out more and see a detailed schedule of the “shows” on the the .

To get the inside scoop on the series, read the teen authors’ blogs about their journey, watch a book trailer, and read excerpts from the girls’ books, visit the Louder Than Words website.

To become a fan on Facebook, go to the .

And here’s a quick at the first three books in the series:

MARNI by Marni Bates, age 19

Unable to deal with the mounting stress at home, in school, and with friends, Marni’s compulsion to yank out her eyebrows, eyelashes…even the hair from the top of her head, helped her to quiet her mind and escape the pressures of the world around her. Marni first began pulling the summer just before entering high school, and she was immediately hooked. Unfortunately, by the time she discovered that her habit was an actual disorder – trichotillomania or “trich” – it was way too late.

“When I stared at the mirror and tried to recognize the girl without eyebrows, eyelashes, and bangs as myself and failed, I knew something had gone horribly wrong.”

CHELSEY by Chelsey Shannon, age 17

When her only surviving parent, her beloved father, was violently murdered before her fourteenth birthday, Chelsey’s life was forever changed. As she was forced to come to terms with a new home life, a new school…a new identity as an orphan, Chelsey struggled to make sense of her personal tragedy. Yet she found a way to flourish despite all the odds.

“Dad’s coming home tomorrow morning, I wanted to snap at them. I don’t know what you’re all talking about. Even so, I felt the world around me begin to slip away, my vision swimming as lightness filled my head. I couldn’t stand…I couldn’t think. Part of me, somewhere, knew that it was true.”

EMILY by Emily Smucker, age 19

Plagued with some sort of cold or fever or bizarre aches and pains for much of her life, Emily thought the dizziness and stomachaches at the start of her senior year were just another bout of “Emily flu.” But when they didn’t go away, she knew something was seriously wrong. Eventually diagnosed with the rare and incurable West Nile virus, Emily watched her senior year and the future she had planned for go up in smoke.

“I want a normal life for a teenager. I want to ache from a long day at work. I want to be so busy that I don’t have time to post on my blog. I want to run the race of my life instead of being pushed along it in a wheelchair. I want to be on the ride of my life, you know?”