Thank you to my wonderful editor, Kate Mills. You give me the space to breathe and, with your insightful direction and guidance, help make my stories better. Thank you also to the entire HQ team. Without exception, your combined enthusiasm, talent, professionalism and dedication make this journey a pleasure. Thank you to my agent Broo, as always a tower of strength, encouragement and friendship.
Thanks to Dieter Newell for donating to CLIC Sargent and naming ‘Young Lawrence Mould’. Generous as ever.
Heartfelt thanks to author and friend Quentin Bates who helped me sort the gunwales from the winches, and provided me with such fabulous anecdotes from his time on the Newlyn trawlers ‘back in the day’. Any fishing-related errors are my own. To my early readers – Cos, Sara, Melissa and Charlie – thank you for your kind words, positivity and suggestions. Siany, thank you for your superb observations and constant cheerleading. You are always there for me, even when facing tough times. What a friend you are. Dearest Lucy, thank you for forensically reading such a horrendous early draft of this book and not telling me to burn it forthwith. From patiently discussing initial thoughts, through to brainstorming final drafts, I can’t thank you enough. To Hannah, thank you for lending me your name and for offering excellent input at the eleventh hour. Thank you to my ‘local crew’ who are always there to cheer me on. You know who you are.
I’d like to thank my readers – you, in fact – who make it all worthwhile. Thank you for sharing the ride with me. To the reviewers, bookshops, librarians, festival organisers, and bloggers who help spread the love of books far and wide. You are incredible. Thank you for your unending support.
A massive thank you goes to my writer friends. Numerous and heavenly. You keep me laughing. You keep me company. You keep me sane.
And, lastly, thank you to my family. To Saffie, for making sure my feet are always warm beneath my desk. To the rest of the menagerie, how I love your furry, feathery cuddles. To my three beautiful and brilliant girls, who I love so very, very much. To my parents and sister for your love and support always. And to Chris, to whom this book is dedicated, you make me a better writer and I love you, still and forever. And with who, like Hannah and Cam, I share such perfect memories of the mad late nineties. (But thankfully no body in a boat…)