Fan Mail: Thank you so much for creating such an amazing series and for responding to the questions and thoughts of teenage girls (and everyone else) with so much respect!

Question:
Ms. Naylor,
Sorry to add to your mail over the holidays, but I’ve been meaning to write to you since I began reading the Alice books when I was nine. At age 20 I’ve decided it’s time to echo everyone who has written to thank you for your creativity, generosity and wisdom in the Alice series and your responses to letters on the website. I’m another individual whose life has been so much better because of you. Your books and the advice that you’ve always provided to the community of readers helped me to get through adolescence and teenage angst with a sense of humor and the reassuring knowledge that my insecurities, interests, and desires were not only shared with many others but also completely ordinary! Your willingness to talk about issues like homophobia helped me stay sane in a small town and a narrowminded student body, where prejudice was prevalent but not often discussed. I’ve reread the books in the Alice series innumerable times, and I can still read any of them (as I often do when I’m home from college) and enjoy every page and plot line while identifying with and living vicariously through the characters. So although this doesn’t adequately express how grateful I am, thank you so much for creating such an amazing series and for responding to the questions and thoughts of teenage girls (and everyone else) with so much respect!

PHYLLIS Replied:
Your letter really made my day.  Thank you so much for taking time to write.  Sometimes sending in a manuscript feels like dropping it down a well, but when readers respond, it is very gratifying.  In another year, Alice will be off for college too, and I hope I can do justice to her then.  Have a wonderful new year.