Shelly, Kenzie’s best friend, cartwheeled onto the track and took her place next to Kenzie. Hundreds of Kenzilla banners rippled and waved in the crowd.

Kenzie Ellington snapped on her helmet and glided on one foot across the rink. “Roller derby players, to your positions!” I have loved bringing this oddball group together, and am honored to now be sharing their story with you.

Over the course of the narrative, Kenzie and her skating crew learn to embrace who they are as individuals and what they can achieve as a team. The Derby Daredevils is ultimately a celebration of change, self-acceptance, and friendship. I cared more about the way others saw me than about being true to myself. I wanted to join new clubs, but was afraid of looking silly or losing certain friends. I got crushes on both boys and girls, but kept the girl-crushes a secret. Growing up, I tended to hide parts of myself. On the track, it’s a good thing to be weird! This is a message I could have desperately used as a kid. I set Kenzie’s journey in the Austin roller derby scene, as both the city and the sport represent communities rooted in eccentricity and individualism. It’s not easy for Kenzie to navigate these changes, in part because she doesn’t yet have a grip on who she really is. As she builds a roller derby team, Kenzie confronts a shifting dynamic with her best friend as well as developing feelings for the cool girl at the park. In The Derby Daredevils, Austin resident Kenzie Ellington has to figure out how to remain true to herself even while her world is changing. Did it have museums full of aliens? Did people walk backwards every other Thursday? It turned out that Austin’s brand of weirdness was actually a promise made by locals to remain authentic despite the city’s rapid growth and change. When I moved to Austin, Texas three years ago, I noticed a slogan printed across banners, bags, and bumper stickers everywhere: “Keep Austin Weird.”

Derby daredevils