Since its publication in 1975, Judy Blume's young adult novel Forever... has stirred controversy for its frank exploration of teenage sexuality. By the same token, it's been an important touchstone for young readers navigating the thorny terrain of first love. It was an important book for Mara Brock Akil, a TV veteran who has re-interpreted it for Netflix for a new adolescent audience.

"Judy Blume was a first for me as a reader," Akil tells Gold Derby. "I think I became a writer because I was a reader first, and I was immersed in her world." Forever, which explores two teenagers navigating sex and intimacy for the first time, had a particular impact on Akil and her friends because "someone was willing to tell us the truth." Blume's book served as "our modern-day internet" for its young readers, explaining love, dating, and everything that comes with it. So when...