I'm a writer/artist who used to teach art therapy at an abused children's home. I was good at it, because I was one of them. The main thing I've discovered about bullied and abused kids and adults is the destruction of our self worth. One of my memoir readers sent me a stack of children's books dealing with the subject, with the simple Post-it note on top which read "You can do better than this." She was right. They were terrible. Mediocre art, victim blaming, well meaning or not. One book even demanded that kids "Just say no." That doesn't often work when you're a little kid. Thus began this project of love for all my brothers and sisters of circumstance, adults and kids alike, who've had their confidence damaged by bullying or worse. I wanted to make a book that would have helped and comforted me as a kid. I was bullied in school a lot, which just cemented the feeling that I deserved it. The little girl in this book is me. I remember that haircut and feeling of bitter helplessness. There is an epidemic of insecurity, suicide and self harm in children and young adults right now. I hope Hurt Magic can help them see that they are worthy. That they deserve Love, especially from themselves. Hurt Magic shows how to do this. Please help me get the word out so we can help as many as possible. This is the most important book I've ever made. Thank you and may the best of your past be the worst of your future from now on!

Love, R

What do you do when you've been hurt by bullies? When you're so filled up with that hurt, you don't know what to do with all the MAD inside? This is the story of a little girl who is so angry from being hurt, she feels dirty, ugly and stupid. And that makes her madder! But she finds a magic that can help heal all that hurt, and help her believe in magic again!

From its first caustic, blackly hilarious quote to its unbelievable ending, Freak examines a roller coaster ride of a life and never lets up. It tells the true story of Rebecca O'Donnell, an atypical hero who found joy and laughter in the darkest of circumstances. Unlike so many spunky survivors of damaged pasts, Rebecca belonged to those far more common gray areas of depression and insecurity, hidden behind a mask she showed the world.

For decades, all her decisions were colored by that grayness, that insecurity; she had put herself into a pit and had to discover a way to crawl out of it. With laughter, self-recognition, and a drop of shaky courage, Rebecca shares exactly how she did that, discovering in the process a gift that she never expected-the ability to help others build their own ladder out of hell. Freak offers hope to anyone who has ever heard that voice of self-hatred-the gremlin of insecurity whispering that we can't, we shouldn't, and we don't deserve.

It is the denial of that gremlin and the shattering of its lie that make this memoir resonate with other victims of incest, substance abuse, and depression.

Prostitution is legal. Money is openly worshipped as a god. Children of the elite are grown in artificial hosts instead of their mother's womb. Ultimate luxury hotels supply their clientele with AI sex droids created solely to fulfill every fantasy. Stupendous wealth is a moral imperative - not only to sustain, but grow, by any means necessary. Human life is disposable. Dolly, Keisha and Tanja are three human sex workers trying to make it in a world where living flesh is becoming obsolete. Sarcastic, bawdy, and completely loyal to each other, the women work the streets and cheap hotels every night while Kyle, their driver, keeps a protective eye over them. One day, woken by one of her chronic nightmares, Dolly goes for a jog in an attempt to clear her head. Finding herself in an unknown area, she accidentally stumbles onto a terrible secret which soon puts all their lives in danger. Now they must run from a ruthless, unstoppable enemy who has eyes and ears everywhere.