Interview with Allie Sarah, Author of The Gossip Games

 

Short and sweet: Give us the elevator pitch for The Gossip Games.

 

Enemies to lovers, fake dating, and best friend's brother romance collide in this fun and flirty YA rom-com.

 

You’re eighteen–and have already published a book! When did you start writing The Gossip Games?

 

In my sophomore year of high school! I worked between classes and after school. Fun fact - I wrote part of The Gossip Games with my laptop resting on top of a laser printer in a woodworking lab.

 

What was the hardest part of writing? (I find middles of first drafts particularly tough.)

 

Editing, because I loved the first draft so much. Even though I knew it needed revisions, it was so hard to cut things!

 

At 18, I was writing and knew I wanted to be a writer--what made you take the actual leap into publishing so early on?

 

I wrote the book, and it seemed like the next logical step was publish it! I'm still learning and growing as a writer, and it's definitely incredible to call myself a published author at such a young age. Each subsequent book will always be an improvement on the previous one, and I'll always remember The Gossip Games as my first.

 

You’re actually so young, you’re still the target reader for the YA genre! What are your favorite YA books or authors? Favorite genres?

 

I adore Ali Novak, Becky Albertali, and Cookie O'Gorman! Surprise surprise, I read a lot. Some favorite books include Tell Me Three Things, Hot British Boyfriend, and That Wasn't In The Script.

 

There are so many different paths to publications now–hybrid, indie, traditional. Tell us about the path you took.

 

To be honest, I'm not sure what category I fall under! I signed with Snowridge Press, a small publisher, so I feel like I get the best of both worlds. They are so incredible in supporting me and my writing, and I adore both my editors.

 

What’s it been like seeing your book out in the world?

 

It's absolutely insane! To get tags that people are reading, have random people stop me and say that they bought the book -- people know me as the 'author girl' or 'author Allie'. It's been over 2 months, and I'm still a little in disbelief that it's actually real.

 

What’s the best piece of advice you can give young authors?

 

Write! Try to make a little time each day to write, even if it's just one word. Because then you're one word closer to your goal <3

 

You’ve got a second book forthcoming–what else do you have brewing? Off to college? Going to major in English?

 

I actually just finished my first year of college, and I'll be formally declaring my English and Creative Writing double major in the fall!

 

Where can we find you and keep up with the latest? 

 

You can find me online at @authoralliesarah on Instagram and @the.book.princess on TikTok!

 

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