by Isobel Irons
CHAPTER NINETEEN
“THE LETTER”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Twenty is not a multiple of seven. And I’m sorry, but I’m really not comfortable with that fact. Not yet.
So sue me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
There we go. All good.
THE END
APPENDIX
Acknowledgements
Honestly, it’s getting to a point where I’ve got too many people to thank.
I realize that means I’m totally blessed, because too many people in my life are incredible. But it really doesn’t make me feel any less like an obnoxious actor at the Oscars who goes on and on about all these people the average viewer has never heard of before and don’t really care about…I mean, thank your wife and your mother. Do that for sure. But do we really need to hear about that guy who gave you your first day player role on “Days of Our Lives,” or the guy who makes you coffee in the morning, or that Hollywood agent who gets paid to tell people you’re awesome?
I don’t know, it might just be me. But I’ve always sat watching those speeches and secretly wondered: do those actors ever bother to personally thank the people they’re gushing about on live television? Or is that one blanket broadcast just kind of supposed to count toward “all the little people who I stepped over to get here”? Not to mention, forgetting someone in that public list—especially someone really important—can be disastrous for a person’s relationships.
So this time, instead of trying to list the names of all five thousand or so wonderful, amazing and kind-hearted people who helped me get through the writing of this book, let me just say this:
If you have ever taken the time to teach me anything, whether it be the alphabet, or a swear word in another language, or how to change a tire, or even if you’ve just led by example and made me want to be like you in some way…you’re basically fucking awesome, and I love you.
If you read and enjoyed this book, I already adore you beyond compare. Because you get me, man. But if you also find the time to share this book with a friend or family member, the love I have for you at this moment—which is currently vast—will seem like a mere grain of sand compared to a universe of beaches. That’s how much I will love you if you take the time to review, or blog about, or otherwise spread the messages contained in this book. Endless love.
If you have ever stood up for someone who was bullied or ostracized because they were different, I retroactively dedicate this book to you. Actually, scratch that. I dedicate the entire Issues Series to you and your big ass heart. I would hug you right now, if I could.
Hell, if you’ve ever had a hard time relating to someone, because they were different than you, and you maybe kind of secretly wanted to avoid them…but instead you made the effort to look past those differences and find out more about their reality, you sir or madam, are a badass.
Come to that, if you’ve done any of those things mentioned above in the last year or so, I still think you’re pretty amazing. Keep that shit up. You’re golden.
Finally, I’d like to thank everyone I’ve ever met who gave me any kind of material for the books I write…which covers basically…everyone I’ve ever met.
Even and possibly especially that guy who screamed at me in front of an entire restaurant full of people and made me cry, seven years ago when I was waitressing at that steak house, because you felt your steak was overcooked and decided to blame me for it.
You sir, are a gigantic asshole. But thank you for the experience. I hope you learned from it, I know I did.
That’s all for me tonight, folks.
Don’t forget to tip your waitress.
About the Author
As you might have already guessed, I kind of have a thing for hats, and Isobel Irons is a pen name.
In real life, I am (among many things) an indie film director and TV producer with a deep–some might even say obsessive–appreciation for onscreen storytelling and a lifelong book habit that I just can’t seem to kick.
In film, there’s nothing I like better than a JJ Abrams “show, not tell” character reveal, or a Joss Whedon banter session. Or an Erik Kripke-level “bromance.” And of course, I’m a die-hard fan of the will they / won’t they trope, where the fans start shipping two characters agonizingly long before they share their first kiss.
In my novels, I use my visual storytelling skills to show the reader an entire menagerie of hidden worlds. When it comes to imagination, there is no production value and no budget. But if there was, I would spend it all and then some. To me, my characters are real people, who just happen to live in my mind. Before I write, I scout locations to set the scene, I hold exhaustive casting sessions to find the perfect quirks that will ignite the maximum amount of conflict. Then, I throw in some tricky, but believable situations that allow my characters to expose themselves–sometimes in a figurative, emotional sense, other times quite literally. Rawr.
Finally, I sit back and let the story unfold. If it sucks, I cut it. I tell my characters–sternly, but calmly–to reset and do it again, but this time give me MORE. Show me MORE. Make me laugh or cry or want to hit something MORE. And then, when I realize I’ve read through the entire thing in one sitting and–Holy shit, is it really that late, and Oh my God I am SO hungry! Have I even eaten today? That’s when I know it’s ready to be unleashed into the world.
Vivid characters. Vibrant settings. Realistic ISSUES. Together, these elements combine to form the Ultimate Literary Crack. Or, as I like to call it, “Promoting Literacy through Shameless Fiction Addiction.”
Join me in Shameless Lit & Film Addiction here:
Amazon
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The Book Escorts: Dominating Self-Publishing (in a Good Way) Since 2010
The S&M (Self-Publishing & Marketing) Podcast with Maven & Minx (I’m Minx!)
Where the Hell is Margot?
Don’t worry, Margot is getting her own book. Look for the next book in The Issues Series, MELODRAMATIC, coming in 2014!
Keep an eye on the News & Events Page of IsobelIrons.com for more information.
Or just SIGN UP HERE to become a member of “Izzy’s Street Gang” for email updates!
Educate Yourself About OCD
As most psychologists will tell you, one of the most hurtful things a sufferer of OCD has to deal with is when others misjudge or misunderstand the severity of this disorder. One only has to do a google search of the term “OCD” to come up with a long list of posts and jokes mocking sufferers of OCD or labeling any and all excessive sanitary practices or the appearance of extreme neatness as “that’s so OCD,” or “I’m so OCD.”
In researching this book, I read an article about a man who spent his entire adolescence plagued by violent intrusive thoughts, but he never sought help or fully understood what was happening to him until he’d reached adulthood. Because according to the dramatic portrayals of mental illness he’d seen and heard of on television and in other forms of media, he didn’t feel like his problems were ‘that bad.’ When he did try to explain what he was feeling to one of his friends, she rolled her eyes and said something like, “I totally know what you mean. I feel that way all the time.” So he kept the details to himself, and just assumed that his friend was better at ‘dealing’ with life than he was.
The most important thing to remember is that there is never just one side to every coin. The brain is such a complex, personal organ. Everyone’s mind works differently. Which means that illnesses and disorders will affect each person in different ways. Telling someone they don’t have a mental illness, or that they’re not entitled to the same kind of consideration and compassion as someone who has a more “severe” or more “obvious” disorder is wrong. Even trying to rank other people’s illnesses by how easy they are for the average “healthy” person to understand or r
elate to, that also seems really wrong to me.
Show You Care, but Don’t Compare
Be careful what you say, and what you assume. You can’t ever really put yourself in someone else’s shoes (figuratively speaking), no matter how compassionate of a person you are. But you can offer your sympathy, and support, without trying to compare their pain to your own.
Common Treatments and Therapies for OCD:
CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) – Or, as Jeanne called it, “Cognitive Reprogramming” can be extremely helpful, if done properly by someone who is trained to work with OCD patients.
Exposure Therapy – The YouTube videos Grant watched that first introduced him to this type of therapy were based on a short BBC series called “Extreme OCD Camp,” which I highly recommend watching. You will probably laugh, you will definitely cry, but more importantly you will be moved by the courage of these brave teenagers who live with OCD on a daily basis. You’re going to see a variation of this technique used in Margot’s book, MELODRAMATIC, because it’s also used to treat patients suffering from generalized anxiety disorder and PTSD.
Medication – As much as Grant wished he could go cold turkey and stop taking any kind of prescription, the truth is that some kind of medication will be necessary for most OCD patients. Contrary to the way Grant felt (and the way a lot of people unfortunately believe) it doesn’t make him weak or unable to cope, any more than a diabetes patient is weak for needing insulin. Wouldn’t it be great though, if there wasn’t any kind of social stigma associated with these types of medications? Don’t you think it would be easier to ask for help, if you weren’t worried about being judged or treated differently?
Learn More About OCD and How You Can Help (It Starts with Awareness):
International OCD Foundation
Psychology Today
Caregiver Resources for Friends and Family Members
Find Help for OCD Here
Peace of Mind Foundation
OCD Awareness Week
OCD Challenge
Personal OCD Stories and Videos:
My OCD by JohnTheEng
How I Beat OCD by JohnTheEng
Living with OCD by Elizabeth McInvale, Founder of the Peace of Mind Foundation
Getting Through OCD Treatment by Elizabeth McInvale
Howie Mendel Talks About Living with OCD (20/20 on ABC)
FREE Online Therapy with OCD Specialist Katie d’Ath (YouTube):
Introduction
Where does OCD come from?
Learning to deal with anxiety differently – Habituation
Understanding “Intrusive Thoughts”
Table of Contents
An Introduction by Isobel Irons
PART I: PERFECT
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
PART II: FUNCTIONAL
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
PART III: MOST LIKELY TO…
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
PART IV: CRASH & BURN
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
PART V: KNOW IT ALL
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
APPENDIX
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Where the Hell is Margot?
Educate Yourself About OCD
