This fall marks the second year of Getting What I Deserve — and with another school year beginning, I keep returning to one particular scene.
It’s not a big confrontation or a dramatic turning point. It’s quieter than that. But for me, it’s where everything truly begins.
Charlie opens the door.
He’s alone at home. Summer has just begun. School is finally behind him — along with the worst year of his life.
He’s been humiliated, ignored, laughed at, and hurt. He’s been the target of something that never quite had a name but never stopped, either.
And now, on the other side of that door, stands the boy who started it all.
“Hey, Charlie.”
Mark smiled at me like we were best friends.
We like to believe that when someone’s been bullied, the next time they see their tormentor, they’ll slam the door.
Charlie doesn’t.
And that’s where the story really begins.
For readers, it might be frustrating. For parents, it might be terrifying.
But for kids who’ve lived through something like this? It’s deeply familiar.
Because sometimes, the line between attention and affection is razor thin.Because sometimes, being noticed — even by the person who hurt you—feels better than being ignored.
Because sometimes, believing someone has changed feels safer than believing you’re still alone.
Charlie’s not naïve. He’s not weak.
He’s doing what so many real kids do: trying to make sense of something no one ever explained.
“I was mature enough to know what he was doing, but no one else could see it.”
— Getting What I Deserve
This isn’t a story about “learning to stand up for yourself” in a tidy, after-school special kind of way.
It’s a story about what it means to long for connection from someone who’s also done harm.
It’s a story about how confusing it is when power gets disguised as friendship.
And how healing doesn’t always look like a single bold moment — sometimes, it looks like deciding not to shrink anymore.
In its second year, my hope is that Getting What I Deserve continues to reach the readers — young and old — who recognize what Charlie goes through. Who’ve opened their own metaphorical doors, even when they weren’t sure they should have.
It’s not easy to untangle hurt from hope.
But Charlie starts to.
And I think that’s what makes him brave.
💬 If this story resonates with you—or reminded you of someone you know—I hope you’ll share it.
👉 Read the First Three Chapters
👉 Purchase the novel
📘 The standard edition of Getting What I Deserve is available on Amazon as an ebook, Paperback, Hardcover and Audiobook.
Discussion questions and more for teachers, book clubs, and parents