C-Cutting/Self-Injury and Characters in YA Books

utting and self-injury

Cutting and self-injury/self-harm is the act of deliberately harming your own body, most commonly by cutting or burning. It is not typically a suicide attempt, but rather, an unhealthy way to cope with emotional pain, intense anger, and/or frustration.

Cutting and self-harm is an addictive behavior. It is unknown how many teens self-harm because those who self-harm go to extremes to hide it. 

Here are some characters from books that focus on cutting and self-harm.


 Callie from Cut by Patricia McCormick cuts herself. Never too deep, never enough to die. But enough to feel the pain. Enough to feel the scream inside.










 Kendra from Scars by Cheryl Rainfield is a sexual abuse survivor, cuts to cope with the pain, but when Kendra's abuser starts threatening her, she must find a way to face her past and stop hurting herself--before it's too late.







 Willow from Willow by Julia Hoban  blocks the pain of losing her parents by secretly cutting herself. But when Willow meets Guy, a boy as sensitive and complicated as she is, she begins an intense, life-changing relationship that turns her world upside down.








Don't forget about the power of three!!!

Head over to Moxie Writers for more on the YA cause/tough issue and organizations that help.

Head over to Susan Oloier's site for a song and lyrics that pertain to today's issue.

Speak Out Against...bullying and

 self-harm

1 in 4 kids are bullied. Bullying can lead to depression. Depression can lead to self-harm and suicide. It is said that 1 in 20 teens self-harm. Over 630,000 visits to the ER every year is due to self-injury.

Give love to The Butterfly Project, a blog style, open forum that deals specifically with bullying, self-harm, and suicide and has given cutters and those that self-harm a way to change themselves and the world.

The Butterfly Project

THE RULES: 1. when you feel like you want to cut, take a marker or pen and draw a butterfly on wherever the self-harm occurs.
2. name the butterfly after a loved one, or someone that really wants you to get better.
3. NO scrubbing the butterfly off.
4. if you cut before the butterfly is gone, it dies. if you don't cut, it lives.
5. if you have more than one, cutting kills them all.
6. another person may draw them on you. these butterflies are extra special. take good care of them.
7. even if you don’t cut, feel free to draw a butterfly anyways, to show your support. if you do this, name it after someone you know that is suffering right now, and tell them. it could help.

The butterfly project on facebook. 


Supporting The Butterfly Project is a way to spread awareness and create change. Join me and draw a  butterfly on your wrist for those who are bullied, who self-harm, who debate suicide. Stand up, speak out.

And the tour continues...as Linda Jackson

Speaks Out Against...bullying

The Speak Out Against...Book Tour continues over at Linda Jackson's blog Writers Do Laundry, Too. Join her as she shares with us her experiences with bullying. Thank you, Linda for hosting us today!


Linda Jackson is the author of the middle grade novels The Lie That Binds and When Lambs Cry, the sequel to The Lie That Binds. In addition to her own books, she published What's The Matter, Mr. Giraffe? (2003) by Gloria Menifield, There Are No Blankets On The Moon (2004) by Angela Gill and Blynda Kellner, Keys (2004) by Jennifer Goodwin, and Field Trip Around the World (2009) by Chloe Jackson and Blynda Kellner. She is a frequent contributor to Chicken Soup for the Soul, with stories in Just for Teenagers, Here Comes the Bride, and The Power of Positive. She has worked as an independent contractor, developing stories for reading assessment for educational publishers.