You ever hear – “You’d never do cheerleading. You’re too tall,” or “That’s for smaller kids,” or “You don’t have the look”? I’ve heard it. From parents. From kids. From grown-ups who haven’t got a clue. And I’m here to tell you: that story? It’s not the truth.
So, are you ready to open the next chapter this year? I’m Allison Sack – been over 20 years in the cheer game, and somehow I ended up writing books too. No fluff. Real stories. Some of my tips. Lots of the weird stuff that happens behind the scenes. Whether you’re folding laundry, stuck in traffic, or just trying to stay sane, you’re in the right place. Let’s turn the page.
Today, I’m doing a deeper dive into my first book in the Little Cheer Library: Cheer For You. It’s also the first story I ever bothered writing down. And yes, I published it. That’s where my self-publishing journey began.
Who Brought It to Life
My illustrator is Nina Mkhoiani. She’s amazing. She takes my messy ideas and storyboards that look half-finished, and somehow turns them into illustrations that are exactly what I meant. I love working with her. Seeing her work is honestly one of my favourite parts of this process.
What the Story Is About
Cheer For You is more about school cheer than All-Star. Back when I wrote it, I was coaching primary schools here in Western Australia. Those were my kids. Pom-pom performances and school gym routines and all that school performance vibes. That’s what I saw every day, and what influenced the story.
Nowadays I coach All-Star too, and most of my stories pull from that world. But this one came from school, where kids begged for pom-poms, where tryouts felt huge, where being “not enough” gets whispered too often.
Characters That Smash Stereotypes
I wanted characters who felt real. Not the standard small blond flyer stereotype — nothing wrong with that, but it doesn’t cover the whole sport. So, Lily: tall, shy, Asian. And Emily: redhead, loud. Lily worries about being tall. She hears all the “you can’t” talk. But she shows up anyway. And she makes the team. As a back spot. That’s important. Lily is our main character. That’s pretty much my point: you don’t have to fit someone else’s idea of what cheer “should” look like to belong.
I wanted kids reading the story to see themselves. To see someone who may look like them, or act like them, or feel like the people they know. Something familiar. Something real.
Why This Story Matters
Because I’ve heard so many kids — parents, siblings, teachers — say “that sport isn’t for them,” before they even try. It breaks my heart. Lily’s doubts, those fears? They’re real, they’re shared by many, and they deserve to be named. I wanted this book to feel like someone saying: yes, I see you, yes, you can try.
Also, there are extras: “Spot the Difference” puzzles (my kid convinced me these needed to be in), and those moments in the story where I use cheer vocabulary — count calls, facials, set, back spot — so that kids reading recognise what they hear in the gym. It’s that connection between real sport, real talk, and story.
If you want to dig more into why Cheer Chapters and the Book Club exist, or where my path started, I’ve got videos at slategrey-hamster-496221.hostingersite.com/cheerchapters. They pull back the curtain.
Thank you for sticking with me. I hope this chapter gives you something—maybe courage, or recognition, or both. And if someone’s ever told you you’re “too tall” or “not the right type,” I want you to remember: there’s a place in this sport for you. There always is.
Until next chapter,
Allison
Cheer For You
Cheer For You: When Lily decides to attend her very first cheerleading tryout, she’s full of nerves and self-doubt. But with a little courage, a new friend, and the power of teamwork, she discovers that amazing things can happen when you believe in yourself.
