Author’s Note

Have you ever felt cursed? That no matter what you do, no matter how charming you are, no matter how good your work or art is, that it’s all simply…not enough? Is something controlling your fate, stopping you from reaching your dreams? Or is the curse, in fact, you? Are you getting in your own way?

This book doesn’t have all the answers, but it will guide you through the forest of uncertainty, which is thick with brambles and sharp thorns. In Cursed Boys and Broken Hearts, Grant Rossi believes his entire eighteen-year-old life has been ruined by a single red rose.

Is he wrong? You be the judge.

Who here hasn’t had something so small in their lives become so big that it blocks out everything else? In fact, this story tackles the realities of such a thing—depression. Be forewarned, this story takes a look at characters in the throes of depression and self-hatred, but there are also depictions of pathways forward, like therapy, SSRI medications, and—shockingly—self-forgiveness.

Of all my characters, Grant Rossi is the one I’d most like to meet because he is me at my angriest, my most inconvenient, and my most in-need-of-a-hug. Writing Grant, by allowing him his anger, I could allow myself the anger I hadn’t let myself comfortably feel my entire life. Please, from the bottom of my heart, give my angry boy a chance—a chance at being himself, a chance to find his own way, a chance to win you over, and a second chance at love.

With these caveats out of the way, I am proud to present the grand romantic destiny of Grant Rossi.