School Visit - Portland, Texas

Recently, I spent the day at G-P Junior High in Portland, Texas, speaking with fabulous teens and teachers about my novel, WHO R U REALLY?, and the importance of online safety.  It was a terrific day with thought-provoking discussions and amazing students.

If you're interested in having me visit your school or organization, email me at margokelly1 @ outlook . com (without the spaces).

The Scariest Part: Margo Kelly Talks about WHO R U REALLY?

The scariest part of this novel is the truth inside, because much of the story happened in real life. The good news is: my daughter is fine and thriving. But the bad news is: there are too many teenagers across the nation who go missing every single day because they were beguiled by an online predator. I know it sounds like yesterday’s news, and in some sense it has become boring to adults. But that only makes it easier for the guy trying to lure your child away. And today, there are new avenues to do just that.

My daughter participated in an innocent online role playing game where she met a guy. He seemed nice. He seemed to need a friend. He seemed safe. But in fact, he was none of these things.

Over a year’s time, while I thought she was playing a simple game, this guy manipulated her and had her convinced they were in love. Not only had they exchanged cell phone numbers, but they had also arranged a time and place to meet … after school and before sports practice. That meant he would have had her for hours before I ever even went to pick her up from practice. Luckily, I discovered texts on her phone before anything came to fruition. But one of the scariest things was that she chose to believe a complete stranger over her own mother. He’d swayed her so well. He was an expert at what he did.

The plot of Who R U Really? offers up several fictional characters for readers to suspect as the online predator, and I won’t give away the details of that story here. But I will tell you that in real life, the predator had convinced my daughter (who was eleven going on twelve at the time) that he was a nineteen-year-old boy who needed a friend. In fact he was about three decades older. And because he lived in another state and because I stopped the process before he harmed her, there was nothing the police could do about it. Of course they investigated, but he had not yet broken any laws when it came to my daughter. Even though the police knew exactly who he was and where he lived, they could only watch him. I hope they still are, because as far as I know, he is still online playing games with young kids and trying to lure them away from their parents. He’s even fished around and tried to reconnect with my daughter over the years.

A local police detective said to my daughter, “It is your job to tell others—your real everyday friends that you go to school with—tell them what happened to you, so nothing like this can happen to them.” My daughter agreed. This novel was born with the hopes of helping others spot and unmask internet predators.

Here are a few tips for young adults to stay safe online:
1) Only accept friend requests on FB (and other social media) from people you know in your everyday life.
2) Be transparent with the people in your real life who love you.
3) Trust your parents. You don’t have to always agree with them, but trust that they have your best interests in mind.
4) Keep your actual birthdate, phone number, email, street address, even city private. No one online needs to have that personal information about you.
5) Most importantly, remember that there is strength in numbers. Use the buddy system, and do not ever meet an online acquaintance by yourself. Not ever. Just don’t even play with the idea.

While my daughter did the opposite of several of these above items, she is now my hero for being willing to share her personal choices, conversations, and feelings, regardless of the negative judgment she might receive as a result.

Who R U Really? is primarily a work of fiction, but the essence of the plot is what happened when my daughter was nearly abducted. And that’s the scariest part.

...

“Inspired by her own daughter's terrifying story, Kelly has painted a realistic picture of how a smart girl can get caught up in something dangerous online. Guaranteed to give readers goosebumps—particularly as events heat up toward the end. … A good choice for families to read together.” – School Library Journal 

“Thea’s mistakes, while frustrating to encounter, are frighteningly plausible, and the relationships among characters are well–fleshed out, especially between mother and daughter. Kelly’s first novel is a suspenseful page-turner with multiple suspects, a little bit of romance, and a strong but not overbearing message.” – Kirkus Reviews 


To learn more about Who R U Really? simply click here or click on the tab at the top of the page.

School Visit - Corpus Christi

On February 16, 2018, I spoke with the spunky students of W.B. Ray High School in Corpus Christi, Texas, thanks to their wonderful librarian, Analisa Lawhon! We talked about online safety, the latest online rages, and what it's like to be an author. 

I continue to be impressed with the young people around the country.

If you're interested in having me visit your school or organization, feel free to email me at margokelly1 @ outlook . com  (without the spaces) for more information.

School Visit - Portland, Texas

The fabulous librarian, Michelle Costilla, invited me to spend the day with the students of Gregory-Portland Junior High School in Portland, Texas, on February 15, 2018. We had a full day of six different presentations, talking about online safety and my book, Who R U Really?. All of the students were terrific and so much fun to be around.

If you're interested in having me visit your school or organization, feel free to email me at margokelly1 @ outlook . com  (without the spaces) for more information.

School Visit - San Antonio

On February 14, 2018, I had the pleasure of visiting Sippel Elementary School in San Antonio, Texas. What a pleasure! We had a great discussion about online safety, being an author, and reading great books. I had trouble choosing only a couple of pictures - - - so scroll on down for your viewing pleasure! 

If you're interested in having me visit your school or organization, feel free to email me at margokelly1 @ outlook . com  (without the spaces) for more information.

National Cyber Security Awareness Month Launches With a Call to STOP. THINK. CONNECT.™ Online

Large-Scale Awareness Effort Highlights Our Shared Responsibility to Be Safer and More Secure Online at Home, at Work and School, and in the Community

This October marks the 14th annual National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) – a far-reaching online safety awareness and education initiative co-founded and led by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Each week’s awareness efforts will focus on a specific theme; topics highlighted include simple steps to online safety, cybersecurity in the workplace, securing new and emerging technologies, building the cyber workforce and promoting cybersecurity in critical infrastructure.

All efforts fall under the month’s overarching theme, “Our Shared Responsibility,” which recognizes that we all need to do our part to be safer online and, when we do, we make the internet more secure for everyone. Young people across the globe share this sentiment. A recent international survey of adults ages 18 to 26 – conducted by Raytheon and Forcepoint in partnership with NCSA – reveals that 84 percent of young adults worldwide think keeping the internet safe and secure is a responsibility we all share.

NCSAM 2017 kicks off with a focus on STOP. THINK. CONNECT.™, the global online safety education and awareness campaign co-founded by NCSA and the Anti-Phishing Working Group; DHS leads the federal engagement of the campaign. STOP. THINK. CONNECT.™, launched in October 2010, is simple, actionable advice all digital citizens can follow – STOP: make sure security measures are in place. THINK: about the consequences of your online actions. CONNECT: and enjoy the internet. There are more than 140 STOP. THINK. CONNECT.™ resources, including videos, tip sheets, infographics and memes, that are available for free to download and share at home, at work and in the community.

View the full press release – and learn more about NCSAM 2017 – here

And be sure to check out Who R U Really?, a novel inspired by real-life events when my daughter was nearly abducted by an online predator. For more information, click here.

Behind the Scenes of WHO R U REALLY? - A Great Discussion

I love visiting with students about reading, writing, and online safety! I had the great pleasure of returning to Sawtooth Middle School this year to discuss those three topics with a new group of students (future authors, literary critics, and origami experts).

To make the visit even better, they followed it up with a thank you card with hand-written notes inside. Julie does a fantastic job with the library and her students there.

Here are a few snapshots from the event:

 

9 Digital Spring Cleaning Tips

"Spring Cleaning" makes me think of tidying up my house, but there are other items that need our attention as well. In order to remain cyber-aware and keep ourselves and our children safer online, we need to clean out our devices. Here are a few tips:

Internet Awareness Presentation

Oh, it was a fabulous day at Tuloso-Midway High School in Texas!

We talked about this silly meme:

Why did we discuss this? Because even if something you see on the Internet is actually true, it can still be misleading and have destructive results. 

Think things through before taking action based on something seen online.

After talking about the tennis balls, I shared the real-life story of what happened to my daughter when she was almost abducted by an online predator.

Then we had a terrific discussion about Internet awareness topics. Some of the questions that stirred the most debate were:

* Why do teens NOT want to tell their parents about online safety concerns?
* Why would you want to go and meet someone alone in the park?
* Why do people blame victims?

Each group gravitated to topics that interested them specifically, but each discussion was insightful. Teenagers are SO smart and Internet savvy. They could certainly teach adults a thing or two!

Here are a few snapshots from the day's presentations:

If your school is interested in having me present an Internet Awareness presentation, please email me at margokelly1 @ outlook . com (without the spaces) for more information.

Online Safety Resources

Since my novel, Who R U Really?, features an online predator, I'm often asked to speak to groups (young and old) about online safety. This coming Friday, I'll be leading several discussions at a high school in Texas. As I put a few polishing touches on the presentation and tailor it for this group, I reviewed some of the fabulous resources available over at the Stop.Think.Connect. website.

Here are a few items that stuck out to me this time:

According to a 2016 study featured on the STC website:

* 60% of teens said they've created online accounts without their parents being aware

* In contrast - only 28% of parents think their children have created secret accounts 

* 48% of teens said they'd rarely (or never) tell their parents about online problems they're having

* In contrast - 90% of parents think their children will talk to them some (or all) of the time about online problems

For more information visit my previous posts about online safety:

Stop.Think.Connect. + tips for staying safer online

Cybersecurity is Our Shared Responsibility

If you'd like me to speak to your group about online safety - email me at: margokelly1 @ outlook . com (without the spaces).

A FLOOD of Events!

Over the next several weeks, I have exciting events happening. Join me:

February 6, 2017 - 10am-10:45am (PST)
Listen live as it happens: Radio Interview with Laura Moe on "Authors on the Air"

February 11, 2017 - 10am-12:30pm - Boise, Idaho
Idaho Writers Guild Presents: Building Blocks of Storytelling with Margo Kelly & Joshua Bellin
Click here to register!

February 17, 2017 - all day - Corpus Christi, Texas
Cybersafety is Our Shared Responsibility & Who R U Really? Behind the Scenes
Tuloso-Midway High School, Corpus Christi, Texas

February 18, 2017 - 9am-4:30pm - Corpus Christi, Texas
Teen Bookfest by the Bay - Corpus Christi, Texas

and then ...

March 2, 2017, my terrific daughter is marrying a terrific guy. Just a few things happening over the coming weeks. ;)

Speaking about Online Safety at the AAPC In Meridian ID

October is National Cyber Security Awareness month, and on Thursday, October 13, 2016, we had a great discussion at the Meridian AAPC meeting, talking about everything from using public wireless connections to protecting our kids from online predators.

Since my critically-acclaimed novel, WHO R U REALLY?, is about an online predator, I'm often asked to speak with groups about online safety. Cyber safety does not just apply to our kids. It applies to all of us. Back in 2014, I was asked to partner with the national campaign Stop.Think.Connect., and I'm pleased to offer additional resources to the groups I speak with because of this association.

If you're interested in scheduling me to come and speak with your group, click here to take a look at some of the content I offer during my presentations. Then shoot me an email at margokelly1 @ outlook . com (without the spaces) to schedule an event.

Stay safe online.

October = National Cyber Security Awareness Month

What are you doing to be more #CyberAware and to help promote online safety? You could start by reading Who R U Really?, a novel about a teenager who falls for a guy online. "Based on actual events, the story should be required reading for all teens." --VOYA Magazine 

Here are more tips for being more aware online: