Camille asked Leta Blake:

This question contains spoilers… (view spoiler)

Leta Blake Hi, Camille! I'm glad you enjoyed The Difference Between written under my other pen name, Blake Moreno. :) As for the inspiration, there were several layers to it. One being my experience in my early 20s as a counselor to sexually abused children and adolescents (though, as you know, no one in the book is abused as a child), another layer of inspiration was a friend of mine who was undergoing EMDR treatment to cope with his history of severe sexual trauma. I learned a lot about the EMDR therapy and how it works from him. Another layer of inspiration was a friend who had been sexually traumatized as a teen and young adult and found that BDSM with a trusted partner helped her come to grips with aspects of her own sexuality. Lastly, I will admit that the story of Elizabeth Smart played small role--knowing that she's married now and presumably happy, wondering how she got past the trauma she lived through, etc. I also worked in my early twenties with adolescent boys who had committed sexual violence and the perpetrator in the book was inspired by some of my talks with a particular one of them. So there were a number of experiences from my own past and those of close friends that came into play when crafting this book. Thank you for your interest!

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