As a writer, I’m supposed to avoid cliches. That said, when I remember the start of my publishing journey, it really does feel like five seconds ago and five hundred years ago. I can still recall the phone call that changed my life, received while standing on a Delaware beach under a hot summer sun. My debut novel about gossip in a small Texas town, The Truth About Alice, was going to be a book. A real, hold-it-in-your-hands book people could find on library shelves and the virtual aisles of online booksellers. I can still remember my shouts of joy over the roar of ocean waves, but to give you a sense of how long ago that was, I was taking the call on an old flip phone. The year was 2012. As I anticipate the publication of my sixth novel, a gender-flipped, feminist reimagining of The Outsiders titled Bad Girls Never Say Die, I’m struck by the wild, wonderful, and often whiplash-inducing experiences I’ve had as a published author, many of which I dreamed about and some I never anticipated. Perhaps the most mind-blowing experience of my writing journey came in the fall of 2016 when my agent called me to share the news that Amy Poehler was interested in optioning my novel Moxie for the screen. I’ve never quit my full-time job as a teacher—it means too much to me to give it up—and I was dutifully grading papers in the faculty lounge when I got the call. I remember writing down “Amy Poehler” on a scratch pad as if somehow I’d manage to forget that important piece of information. Visiting the film set years later made my heart explode! To see a world I’d imagined and created transformed for film was so special, and I can share that Amy Poehler is truly one of the nicest, most genuine people on the planet. With the high-water marks there are lows, too. My second novel, Devoted, is about a young woman named Rachel who eventually gathers the courage to leave her controlling religious community. There’s a saying in publishing that the second book is always the hardest, and I must say I fell victim to that expression. I remember weeping in my classroom when my editor called to break the news that my first draft had to be reworked. Completely. By that, I mean rewritten from scratch! It was an arduous, painful process, but one that stretched my writing muscles. Months after the novel came out, I was rewarded for my efforts when a young woman whose real life shared many similarities with Rachel’s came up to me at a writing festival with tears in her eyes. She’d never had her life validated in fiction before, she told me, her voice breaking. Her tears were soon matched by my own. I can think of no better feeling as an author than to know your work has resonated with someone, and I’ve been fortunate enough to experience it many times. My journey in publishing has put me in touch with so many interesting, wonderful people, including sources that helped me craft realistic and honest stories. My third novel, Afterward, had me interviewing brave survivors of abuse, and my fifth novel, The Liars of Mariposa Island, had me digging into my own heritage as the daughter of a Cuban immigrant. I did plenty of research for Bad Girls Never Say Die, too. Because the novel is set in 1964 Houston, I decided to take several Houston seniors out to lunch (pre-pandemic!) to pick their brains about what it was like to be a teenager during that time. These joyful, fascinating conversations might have been the best part of writing this novel. As I head into almost a decade in the publishing industry, the big word that comes to mind is gratitude. So much gratitude for the opportunity to bring my words to the public and for all the lovely, kind, creative people, particularly my readers, who have nurtured and supported me along the way. The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu Winner of the Children's Choice Book Awards' Teen Choice Debut Author Award Everyone knows Alice slept with two guys at one party. When Healy High star quarterback, Brandon Fitzsimmons, dies in a car crash, it was because he was sexting with Alice. Ask Typers.net. Rumor has it Alice Franklin is a slut. It's written all over the "slut stall" in the girls' bathroom: "Alice had sex in exchange for math test answers" and "Alice got an abortion last semester." After Brandon dies, the rumors start to spiral out of control. In this remarkable debut novel, four Healy High students tell all they "know" about Alice—and in doing so reveal their own secrets and motivations, painting a raw look at the realities of teen life. But in this novel from Jennifer Mathieu, exactly what is the truth about Alice? In the end there's only one person to ask: Alice herself.