Our five authors are Anna, Cat, Emma M, Emma S and Hannah.
Anna was a rebellious teenager who got into drugs and alcohol at a young age. She ended up living under the control of an abuser for ten years, before she finally found the strength to leave him and move two hundred and fifty miles away from her family and friends. She believes that if she hadn’t left when she did, she would have been seriously injured or dead within a few years. She aspires to be an author and help other women who have suffered domestic violence and abuse.
Cat was academically two years above her age at school – but she became bored and started experimenting with different drugs, aged eleven. By sixteen she was addicted to heroin and crack cocaine and then a series of drug-related prison sentences followed. She also started prostitution to fund her habit. One time, she injected into a vein in her shin, which became a venous ulcer and has required continuous hospital treatment over the last ten years. She is now on a mission to get clean and stay off drugs. She aspires to be a lyricist.
Emma M moved to London when she was fifteen to escape the ‘loneliness’ she felt living in a small town in the Scottish Highlands. She became involved in drink and drugs and eventually was made homeless. The cycle of starting an unsuccessful relationship and becoming homeless has been a theme throughout her life. She has lived in tents, car-park stairwells and hostels. All that Emma M now wants is to live a normal life, work in a paid job and be a mother again.
Emma S had a happy childhood but discovered alcohol at sixteen and realised that her inhibitions vanished after a glass or two of wine. Unfortunately, her drinking soon escalated out of control and she became an alcoholic for eighteen years. She went into rehab twice but relapsed both times then, aged thirty-four, she had a serious wake-up call from her GP who told her she was dying from alcoholism. Emma S has been sober now for eight years – although life hasn’t always been rosy. She aspires to be a published author and work as a counselor within the field of alcohol abuse and recovery.
Hannah hated school and wanted so much to be popular – but she felt unnoticed. She started smoking and drinking and experimenting with drugs and then, aged 13, started self-harming. She used to burn herself with cigarettes and lighters and smash windows to harm herself. She attempted suicide on numerous occasions, usually as a cry for help. The most serious of these was when she jumped from a first floor window onto a pavement, breaking her back. She aspires to be an author and a gym instructor.
To find out more about our illustrator, Jemma Cholawo, please click here.
We will soon be uploading an interview with our authors. Please keep checking back in!