And I'm still alive. That's what I have to focus on. Because I want to live. Even now I can't let myself give up. And that's something I didn't know about myself before - that I have such dogged determination and strength. That I can be completely focused on a goal and work long past what I thought my endurance was, when I have to.

I hate my body Hate what it remembers. Hate what it let him do.

If I don’t do what feels right to me, what I need and want to do, then am I really living?

I was focused before - obsessed, really - with the appearance of perfection. But what did that ever bring me but pain? Pain and not seeing people for who they really are. If I ever get out of here, I'll look at people differently. I'll look for their true selves beneath the mask of their bodies. I'll look at soul.

My scars show pain and suffering, but they also show my will to survive. They're part of my history that'll always be there.

In Maybe I Will, Laurie Gray writes about important topics that teens need to talk about, including sexual assault, friendship, and alcoholism or self-destructive behaviors that result from trauma. Maybe I Will may help some teens know they're not alone.

I think you've got to get out whatever's hurting you through your art, so it doesn't twist you up inside.