Jamie Mayfield's Blog, page 2

Encouragement by Jo Ramsey

Everyone needs encouragement in their lives, and I think for teens it’s even more important to have someone telling them “It’s okay, you can do this, you’re going to be fine.” My new young adult novel Nail Polish and Feathers is about a boy who doesn’t have that encouragement, but it was written to encourage.

Sixteen-year-old Evan Granger has dreamed for years of becoming a drag queen because he likes to feel beautiful and wants to bring beauty to others. His mother accepts that Evan is gay bu...

Letter From Dakota

Dear friends,

I hope everything has been going well! I’m busy being a rock star – cause you know, I am one of those. Remember? Thought so.

Fun thing I know it’s been a while since we talked, but I have a good reason! This month, (October 12th and 13th) I went to Atlanta Pride and this is my second year marching in the parade! As this is a really special occasion, I thought that I would write about my experience with Pride events to share with a few of you.

As no one has sent me any Q&A requests...

National Coming Out Day: Keeping Perspective

October 11th is National Coming Out Day, which I actually don’t agree with. I agree with the celebration of freedom by our LGBT family, but coming out is a very personal decision that should be made with care and planning, not at the whim of a date on the calendar. There’s no race, no time limit.

It’s something you can’t really take back – once it’s out there, the elephant is in the room. If you’re ready to take that step and open the closet door, I’m right with you – congratulations. But firs...

Dakota talks testing…

Dear Friends,

It’s been a while. I’ve been super busy working with our Queer/Straight Alliance, our Interfaith, and our Diversity Team on campus and YIKES it’s tough. I hope all is well with you -Did you miss me? Of course you did! Who else gives you such quirky advice about things that you didn’t know you needed advice about? Well I can think of a few talk show hosts . . . .

Anyway! I saw something recently that sparked my interest and it has a bit to do with the LGBT community. There is a sch...

Omorphi and A Broken Kind of Life – Different, but the Same by Cody Kennedy

Hey, Jamie! I’m excited about our party today on Harmony Ink’s Facebook page from 12-3p.m. Be there! CST! WE’RE GONNA ROCK THE HOUSE!

Thanks for having me on your blog, Jamie. Today I’m writing about why our books are DIFFERENT but SAME.

Our characters suffer very different forms of abuse. Your Aaron, in A Broken Kind of Life, suffers a single act so violent that his life is destroyed in a matter of hours. My Christy, in Omorphi, has lived years of abuse and knows nothing else. Yet both stories...

Michael Bowler talks Children of the Knight

Please welcome the wickedly talented Michael Bowler to the blog today as he talks about the inspirations behind his novel Children of the Knight. The entire first chapter is included, check it out and give it a shot!

People ask me all the time, “What inspired you to writeChildren of the Knight?” The answer is both easy and sad – society. I’ve been a volunteer within the juvenile justice system of Los Angeles for almost thirty years and a high school teacher for twenty-five. The idea for this b...

Back to school book list

Since Dakota is busy settling in at school, I’ll fill in this week. First, did you know that this week is suicide prevention week? What does that mean for you?

1.) If you are in that dark place where you think that maybe it would be easier to just give up – don’t. What you are feeling is temporary, I promise. Some days you feel better and some days you feel worse – that is a cycle, and soon, it will swing back up. You want to be here when it does. If you take that step, you can never ever take...

I WANTED – A very special story by blogger Dakota

This is a reprint of I Wanted, first published in the Harmony Ink Press newsletter by our very own blogger, Dakota.

I stepped out of a solid white chariot, linked arms with my fair maiden friend, and walked proudly up to the devilish fortress that loomed before us. We were marching into a gruesome battle that neither of us were truly prepared for, and without knowing our fate, we stepped up to the terrifying gateway, which immediately slid open without either of us touching it. A “welcome to t...

Love is more powerful than pain (VIDEO)

Not long ago, a woman came to me telling me that her son was suicidal. He was gay and not accepting it well, and it broke my heart. I sent him a care package – an entire signed set of the Little Boy Lost books and other odds and ends. I wanted him to know that someone half way across the country cared if he lived or died. He read them, and his mom told me later that the package seemed to help. Now he’s in college and more comfortable in his own skin.

That same woman this morning sent me a link...

DAKOTA talks labels and stereotypes

Dear Friends,

Hey there! How have you been? When you read this – I will have officially moved into my apartment at my school! I’ve been waiting since the beginning of May for this! The wait was well worth it though, because now I can pull out all of my drag stuff and put on some shows as Lola, as well as do all of the cool things that I do at college: like participate in our LGBTQ+ and Straight Alliance as well as run our Diversity Team. It’s a lot of work but I’m ready for it!

But anyway, enou...