Penelope Douglas is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. Their books have been translated into more than twenty languages and include The Fall Away Series, The Devil’s Night Series, and the stand-alones, Misconduct, Punk 57, Birthday Girl, Credence, Tryst Six Venom, and Five Brothers. Please look for The Hellbent Series, coming next. They live in New England with their husband and daughter.

They believe a good writer can spin any story in a way with which you’ll connect, and they endeavor to do just that with every book they write. Not many topics are too taboo for them. They love breaking rules and taking themselves out of their comfort zone.

As an adolescent, Penelope was quiet, shy, and afraid. No mistakes could be made, because people would hate them or they’d be alone. So rather than run, they walked. Rather than climb, they kept their feet on the ground. And rather than say “yes,” they always said “no.” And as a result, they didn’t live. They decided they wouldn’t be invisible or waste another second. They left home, went to college, and traveled. They took trains from Atsugi to Tokyo all by themselves. They jumped Hiji Falls when others joked they wouldn’t do it. (They did it twice.) They climbed Mt. Fuji and moved to New Orleans for graduate school without knowing a single person in the city. They did what they dreamed, and they were a lot happier.

Penelope doesn’t worry so much anymore, and they don’t let others’ opinions hold them back. "Be yourself, and OWN it," they say. "You know what that means? Be loud and proud. Nurture who you are and good things will come. Most importantly, your happiness."