**The Rules:** 1. Clone thyself 2. Learn teleportation. The sooner the better. 3. Trust no one. These are the rules I learned as a middle school teacher, though it was the last one that drove me from the classroom forever. Like many educators, I couldn’t survive the politics. After thirteen years, I bailed. How did I, an abuse-surviving queer, end up teaching in the middle of the Bible Belt? Better yet, how did I survive? **New Rule of Life:**  Neither my silence nor my identity is for sale at any price. My former vice principal said it best *(though I wasn’t supposed to see that email)* when he asked, “Why does she always have to write a damn novel?” So here I am. Writing a *damn* novel. As to the why…because I believe in changing the world, one word at a time. *Navigating discrimination, whether it’s from employers, medical professionals, colleagues, or family, is often fraught with uncertainty. Join Raven Oak on their journey of transition and self-discovery in a world built on silence.*