Last week I launched my first published book, which feels a bit like sending your kid to school for the first day. As a writer, you put so much of yourself into those pages. No matter how much you fuss and edit, you eventually have to send it out. And like a parent putting their child on the bus for the first time, you’re both thrilled and terrified at what the other kids will think.

People ask why I wrote a book for parents when I’ve yet to have my first child (Yet. Give it two more months!). Through my work these past few years, interacting with thousands of teens and their parents, here is what I have found:

Parents are busier, with access to more resources and information than ever before.

This means less time to sift through more books, articles, magazines, and blogs in the hopes of finding news they can use.

The idea of “the Sex Talk,” is daunting to most parents.

In a world of teen moms as celebrities, Facebook scandals, and sexy texts between 10 year olds, where do they even begin? And how much are they to cover?

Parents are losing confidence in their ability to influence their children in this area.

They’re struggling to find a way to make their voice heard amidst a culture that daily bombards their children with messages about sex devoid of restraint or morality.

The Sex Talk: A Survival Guide for Parents is intended to be an answer to these problems as a quick, effective guide to get parents confidently talking to their teens and pre-teens today.

Written with humor (this should be fun, people) and packed with tips, anecdotes, and resources, every parent will have the nuts and bolts they need to start talking. Or talk better than they did before.

As a parent, you’ll never do it perfectly. But to not do it at all is to fail your children.

Our children need us to go beyond our comfort zones and address the awkward, the uncomfortable and the complicated. They’re dying for you to talk to them, I promise.

Who better to give them the best values and guidance when it comes to sex, dating, and relationships than their very own mom and dad? Personally, I don’t think anyone.

So grab a copy for yourself or a friend and discover how FUN and pain-free “the sex talk,” can be!

What is something you’ve done that required you to take a risk, to make yourself vulnerable creatively?