Meredith Sue Willis is the author of more than fifteen books, including novels for adults and children, collections of short stories, and nonfiction about the art of writing, most recently Ten Strategies to Write Your Novel. She teaches novel writing at New York University's School of Continuing and Professional Studies.
www.meredithsuewillis.com

Introduction. Section A. Understanding young people's drug use. A1. What are the trends in young people's drug use? A2. Why do young people use drugs and in what ways do they use them? A3. Where do young people get drugs from and how much do they cost? A4. What does all this drug language mean? A5. What are the effects and harms of drug use and how dangerous is it? A6. What does the law say? A7. Can you tell if young people are using drugs? Section B. Be prepared. B1. Be informed - learn facts, not myths. B2. Be aware of your own use of drugs, your feelings and attitudes. B3. Be realistic about what can happen. B4. Know how to listen and relate to young people. B5. Know how to assess young people's involvement with drugs. B6. Be clear about who else you might inform and involve. B7. Negotiate sensible drug rules. B8. Be proactive about educating young people. B9. Learn basic first aid skills. B10. Know where and how to get help. Section C. Dealing with specific situations. Introduction. C1. If you suspect they are using or supplying drugs. C2. If they disclose involvement with drugs to you. C3. If they are drunk or high or lose consciousness. C4. If they have been using or supplying drugs at home or on the premises of organisations they attend. C5. If you find a drug or paraphernalia. C6. If they are arrested for a drug offence. C7. If they are using drugs and do not see any harm in it and/or will not stop. C8. If they are using drugs heavily and/or are dependent. C9. If they are violent or steal money or possessions to buy drugs. C10. If they are supplying drugs. C11. If they are experiencing difficulties or concerns because of other people's drug use. Section D. The drugs. Alcohol. Amphetamines. Caffeine. Cannabis. Cocaine and crack. Ecstasy. GHB/GBL. Heroin, other opiates and opioids. Ketamine. Khat. Legal Highs. LSD. Magic mushrooms. Mephedrone. Nitrous oxide. Poppers. Solvents. Steroids. Tobacco. Tranquillisers. Section E. Where to find out more. Helping organisations and websites. Recommended reading. References. Index.

Meredith Sue Willis's Out of the Mountains is a collection of thirteen short stories set in contemporary Appalachia. Firmly grounded in place, the stories voyage out into the conflicting cultural identities that native Appalachians experience as they balance mainstream and mountain identities.
Willis's stories explore the complex negotiations between longtime natives of the region and its newcomers and the rifts that develop within families over current issues such as mountaintop removal and homophobia. Always, however, the situations depicted in these stories are explored in the service of a deeper understanding of the people involved, and of the place. This is not the mythic version of Appalachia, but the Appalachia of the twenty-first century.