Truth is, it took me years to write "Waiting on the Sidelines." And I think maybe that was for the best -- I wasn't ready.

I knew I could tell a story. I've told lots of them -- all non-fiction. Through my journalism career, I have been honored to tell the stories of others, sometimes during their darkest hour. I have been their funnel to share their emotions, strength, their passions, their fears, their hopes with the world. But there was always that certain something deep down telling me I had more.

I had the guts, if you will, of "Waiting on the Sidelines" written for a long time. I knew what the crux of the story would be. I could write a great love story, full of passion and romance. But as I matured, and as I watched my friends' daughters endure the difficulties that come along with being a girl growing up, I started to uncover the purpose and the power my story could hold.

Girls can be cruel to one another. So very many of us are. And it's not something that stops when we're 18, when we're 22, when we're 40. We all too often tear each other down. I don't know how we learn it (I suppose it's a trait we pass down, though often non-admittedly). But the damage we do to one another is unforgivable.

I have a few teenaged girls in my life that I consider dear friends, God daughters and family. And I've watched them love the boy that would break their hearts and be bullied by the girl who would get the boy. And that's when it hit me -- this...THIS was what my story needed to center on.

To say I am proud of "Waiting on the Sidelines" would be a profound understatement. Yes, writing books is my dream. And yes, I've taken that step now (and intend to continue, full steam ahead). But more than anything else, I hope this book gets read. Because I think it's something us women (our daughters and the teenaged girls we still are or remember being) need to read. And I think we need to talk about it. And then I think we need to start respecting each other just a little more. We're sisters, and together we are mighty.