A popular columnist and novelist read by young teens around the United States, Nashville-based author Cherie Bennett is as enthusiastic about entertaining her young audience as she is about the city she calls home. A former Broadway actress and singer, Bennett spends much of her non-writing time outside Tennessee, visiting with groups of teen girls in different parts of the United States. The upbeat author's discussions with adolescents are a constant reminder that growing up is a difficult time. "They [teen girls] worry most whether they are cute enough or thin enough," Bennett explained to React for Teens contributor Karen Pritzker. "Their lives become smaller. If I can write one book that saves a girl from that, I'm happy."

Born in 1960, Bennett spent her childhood years in Michigan, the only girl in a show-biz family. Her father worked as a writer for television shows, including Twilight Zone, Route...