“Breaking the Hush Factor is a joy to read! Dr. Karen Rayne is a trusted, expert authority on speaking with children about sex and sexuality. Her voice is caring and compassionate as she guides parents with practical tips and common sense advice for starting “the talk” and keeping them going. Parents will want to read this. Parents need to read this.”
Bill Taverner, MA, CSE
Executive Director, Center for Sex Education
Breaking the Hush Factor is a new kind of parenting book. It isn’t only for parents, it doesn’t make assumptions about gender or sexual orientation, and it won’t scare you. Instead, you’ll find ten concrete rules to strengthen your relationship with your teenager so that you can start to talk about sex. Because most people have sex and everyone needs to talk about sex. Teenagers have adults in their lives who can help them. Breaking the Hush Factor will teach those adults how.
With a Foreword by Heather Corinna, Founder and Director of Scarleteen:
“Karen Rayne is a sexuality educator and advocate with a rare gift: she has always appeared equally, and greatly, skilled at educating and advocating for youth and parents alike. Few of us can make that claim, but if she wanted to, she truly could.”
Heather Corinna
What do you mean, breaking the hush factor? What is this “hush factor” of which you speak and write?
Sexuality is one of our great social taboos – not just in the United States, but in many parts of the world. It is one of those things humans are very hush-hush about, even in the face of clear evidence that talking about sexuality is one of the most effective ways to increase sexual safety, decrease unwanted sexual outcomes, increase sexual pleasure, and reduce sexual stress. Out with the bad, in with the good, and all from talking about sex!
Breaking through the sexual hush factor is the first step towards a healthy sexuality, both individually and culturally. Breaking the Hush Factor is written to support parents and other adults as they begin or continue their journey of talking openly with young people about sex and sexuality.
But before we go any further, we want to reiterate something important: if you want to read a book and be scared, don’t read this one. The hush-hush about sex and sexuality is made so much worse by scaring parents about it, and so that’s not the goal here. If you want to be supported in opening dialogue in honest ways, then you’re in the right place.
Meet the Author, Dr. Karen Rayne
Karen has been talking with teens and parents about sexuality for almost a decade. She originally started working in sex education because she believed in teenagers’ rights to support, love, community, and information – and she still does!
Why you know you’re in good hands with Karen, by the bullets:
- She’s the Chair of the National Sex Ed Conference (third year running)
- Associate Editor of the American Journal for Sexuality Education
- She just returned from a trip to Zimbabwe where she was implementing a sex ed curriculum project she created with the United Nations Population Fund
- She’s the founder of Unhushed, where she teaches private, comprehensive sexuality education for youth in Texas, and consults parents in need
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Some of them asked (please use the Comments page to ask questions you’d like to have answered here, as well as to show your love and appreciation for Karen), some of them anticipated, here’s what you need to know:
“Will you include my name in the Thank Yous if I don’t want it there?”
No. The MENTION perk (only available in the first week of the campaign) is for folks who want it — and you’ll have to request to be named and thanked. We won’t thank you without your consent, and we want an enthusiastic yes.
“Will the book be in bookstores? Or, how will I be able to get it if I don’t preorder?”
Yes. The book will be available through all the major retailers (Amazon, Barnes, etc.) as well as any indie stores that want to carry it. Even better, the E-book will be available at BreakingTheHushFactor.com for the very low cost of pay-what-you-want — and yes, that means $0 if you want it free.
However, this is your best chance to get signed paperbacks, and your ONLY chance to get the special edition hardcover (also signed).
About the Indiegogo Campaign
The primary purpose of this Indiegogo campaign is to allow folks to preorder the book, and to allow a small group of parents to be part of the cocreation of the second edition. Unlike some Indiegogo campaigns, this is not a fundraiser that — if our goal isn’t reached — will have an impact on the eventual creation of the thing. The thing, in this case the book, will be a thing no matter what.
Why the $3000 goal? Where will that money go?
Directly into publishing! A big percentage of the money raised will go toward fulfilling the rewards (e.g., printing/shipping the books). The rest will go toward covering initial design and publishing costs — hoping that the majority of the royalties, once the book is available to the public, will go where they should go: to the author, Karen.
What’s the timeline?
The book will be shipped to Indiegogo campaign contributors after the campaign ends in June! And you’ll be just tickled pink at how pretty it is when you hold it for the first time!