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Rosedale author pens YA book on bullying

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Photos courtesy of Delicia B. Davis

JANAE HUNTER

Stories of children driven to suicide from bullying drove a Queens woman to write a young adult book to teach kids to deal with the trauma, learn how to love and come to peace with themselves.

Delicia Davis, from Rosedale, recently published her first book through Precise Production Group, a company she founded back in 2012. The book, geared at a teen audience, tackles issues such as bullying, drugs, relationships and abuse.

Dear Diary: The Bullying Won’t Stop” follows 14-year-old Patricia Thomas, who has lived a life filled with emotional and physical trauma. Although she is well-off due to an inheritance from her grandparents, she lives with an abusive mother, doesn’t know who her father is, and endures bullying from the kids at her high school. Written in the form of diary entries, readers follow Patricia over the span of a year as she struggles to find her identity and find peace.

“I see news stories every day about kids getting bullied and it makes me sad,” said Davis. “Bullying has become so much more prevalent because of the Internet and social media, and I started thinking, ‘How can we help? How can we stop this?’”

Stories of kids being bullied to the point that they commit suicide are where Davis got the inspiration to write this story. She also said that some of the incidents in the book are loosely based on her own life, but that there are big differences between her and the main character, such as the fact that she, unlike Patricia in the book, has a father figure in her life.

Being a mother of two young boys, Davis said that she always has a listening ear for her sons when they need it, as well as for others who seek her advice.

“I will always give advice and listen to those who need me to. Bullying happens, but people need to know you can’t always overcome things by yourself,” said Davis. “Talk to someone — a parent, a friend, a school counselor — anyone. Or write poetry or your thoughts down in a notebook. Some things you can’t handle on your own. Know that you are not alone.”

 

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