I think something that I've learned from other actresses is to really take the time to get to know yourself, especially because I think that your sense of self is easy to lose when you're playing other people.

That the things that have impacted me most are not news articles written by older people that I would have no relation to; the things that impact me most are things written by people closer to my age. And I wanted to write things in a way where somebody my age could read it and feel like they are holding somebody's hand and be with somebody.

People used to always talk down to me, like, "Oh, you're so young," but now I recognize that my age is an advantage; there's a lot more I can do.

The friendship that you create between you and a mom - or you and an older woman figure - is so important and so influential. I think that my relationship with my sister, my relationship with my best friends - when I'm feeling really terrible about myself, they're always there to let me know that I am being dramatic about something, or I'm being stupid about something - it's good to have those kinds of people to drag you back down and protect you.

It's really scary, when you're on the verge of becoming a teenager, and you don't know if people like you for you or if they like you for the show you're on. So I started finding friends who were not that way, who are accepting and see you who you are.

I think teenagers just want a place to feel safe and understood and heard, while also understanding that it's really scary right now in the world. We don't want to be told, "It's all going to be okay." We want to talk honestly about what's happening and what we can do.

I genuinely love to be by myself, but at the same time, it's such a relief to know that I have another person's head who I can go into and whose life I can live. It's kind of an escape route, almost like therapy. It's refreshing to know that I can go back to a place where I don't have to be myself.