Girls can be cruel. Young love can be devastating. And high school can make you question everything you thought you knew about yourself. Nolan Lennox had things figured out. Named after a baseball legend, she enjoyed being the Tomboy, her closet filled with her brother’s hand-me-downs, cut-off jeans and soccer shorts. But when she overhears the first boy who ever made her heart flutter and a girl she once thought a family friend verbally attack her, Nolan starts to question the very person she thought she was and wonders if being plain, humble and simple can compete with fast, rich and aggressive.

Reed Johnson came to Coolidge High School with a lot of fanfare. The son of a hometown football legend and the brother of a local football hero, Reed wore all the pressures of carrying a town without hope into the spotlight. Thankfully, he had the talent to back it up. But when he meets a girl who makes him think twice about exactly what being a hero means, he starts to wonder if following in his brother’s footsteps might be all wrong. Nolan Lennox was everything that was opposite of expected. She didn’t flirt, she didn’t drink and she didn’t sleep around. Nothing about her was easy, but something about her made Reed want to try harder. Though she didn’t look the part, she seemed to be spending a lot of time in Reed’s thoughts, and he wondered if she could be the one who made it all worthwhile. But could Reed handle letting her down? And would breaking her heart break him beyond repair?

We love stories about young protagonists discovering who they are.
Waiting on the Sidelines is about the anxieties young girls feel over not being good enough, pretty enough, sexy enough, rich enough or daring enough to fit in. It’s about wanting someone so badly but not feeling confident enough in yourself to put your heart on the line. And it’s about desperately craving attention, but also fighting to blend in.

What genre is it?
YA coming-of-age romance.

Waiting on the Sidelines explores young love to its fullest, exposing
how real young heartbreak and passion is and how important it is to discover yourself and hold onto your own identity. The story follows two young characters as they deal with mature situations, including the prevalence of bullying and promiscuity in today’s high school setting. Ultimately, Waiting on the Sidelines is a story of hope, honesty and those powerful, first true loves—the ones worth holding onto. at any cost.

Character-driven, Waiting on the Sidelines is very real and takes you along for every heartbreak, celebration and moment of self-doubt Nolan has as she becomes a woman. Readers experience the rush of Nolan’s first kiss as well as the crushing shame she harbors over her own weakness and inability to stand up to her tormentors. Ultimately, you are immersed in the small town and will come away feeling as if  you are also one of Nolan’s closest friends, and possibly in love with the same, irresistible boy she is.

It sounds as if you really care for these characters.
I have many young women in my life who I love and respect, God daughters, if you will.  I have watched them struggle with confidence, bullies and love, and I wanted to write a story that captured the real emotion — pain, heartbreak, joy, love and confusion — that they feel and survive every day. I believe it is a story that all women will appreciate and understand. I guess you could say we’ve all been there and are Nolan in our own way.

Complete this sentence for us: if you like _________________, you’ll love my book.
Prep and Sea of Tranquility

Have you written any other books that we should read next?
I am working on the follow up to Waiting on the Sidelines.

That’s exciting. Promise to come talk to us about it when it’s published. What should we expect?
A follow up carrying my characters through college, exploring more of the growing pains and struggles young people face during college, including how to hold on to the love of your life when life keeps throwing obstacles in the way.

Tell us a bit about yourself.

Ginger Scott is a writer and journalist from Peoria, Arizona.

Scott has been writing and editing for newspapers, magazines and blogs for more than 15 years. She has told the stories of Olympians, politicians, actors, scientists, cowboys, criminals and towns.

Do you have a website where we can keep up with your work?
Www.littlemisswrite.com

How can we follow you on Twitter and/or Facebook?
@thegingerscott and https://www.facebook.com/GingerScottAuthor