47.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Opening a conversation about Internet dangers
Hewlett native authors book for teens
Stephanie Feuer, attended a meeting at her son’s middle school, five years ago, that addressed the dangers of online predators. FBI officials warned students that you never really know who you are communicating with behind the computer screen.
As parents worried and students yawned, Feuer, a Hewlett native who graduated from the high school in 1973, thought of using the relatable medium of young adult fiction to make teens aware of Internet predators.
Now Feuer has had her first book “Drawing Amanda,” published. It is a novel that explores themes of self-discovery, loss of family members, young love and Internet stalking.
Inky, a 14-year-old high school student, who begins drawing characters for a video game developer seeking artists over the Internet is the book’s protagonist. Amanda, a girl Inky likes, is the subject of his character. But he unknowingly pushes Amanda close to a faceless game developer with a history of stalking young girls on the Internet.
“The book is a good conversation starter about Internet safety,” Feuer said. Based on statistics it is a good time for that discussion. According to a 2013 survey done by pewinternet.org, a research center that tracks American Internet usage, 37 percent of all teens ages 12 to 17 owned a Smartphone and 93 percent of the 802 teens surveyed had access to a computer, which could open them up to Internet stalking and predators.
Feuer, who lives in Manhattan, sent her manuscript to digital and eBook publisher Hipso Media’s “The Next Big YA Book,” a call for submissions for unpublished young adult novels. “I thought [“Drawing Amanda’] could really connect with the YA [young adult] crowd,” said Dan Cohen, Hipso’s acquisitions editor. “Cyber crime and stalking are not really talked about, but it’s important.”
When asked, “Why YA?” Feuer responded, “[Adolescence] is the most fascinating time of your life because you are just filled with so many possibilities, so much is unknown and you get to make these major decisions. Every moment is big.”
