Puberty as a girl sucks. Bras are suffocating, hair sprouts everywhere, adults are suddenly weird about your body. If that wasn't bad enough, I had other kids trying to choke me out every week. I grew up practicing Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and got my black belt at 9 years old. I hated it. Experiencing that visceral anxiety so young was the perfect seed for a body-horror coming-of-age story: going through puberty in such a violently physical environment was stifling, especially while my dad was pushing me to win. Girls need agency!