As a person who is frequently required to stand on a stage and thank people, it’s a relief to be able to write these acknowledgments without the added pressures of an audience, the fear of not finding the right word in the moment, or just plain nerves…
To my fantastic agent, Jane Willis, I am so grateful for your support and how you championed my book from the very start. Along with Hannah and the rest of your team you have helped me grow wings. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
To my editor George Lester, who is not only an incredibly talented man of words, and the most enthusiastic person I have ever met, but who, in a strange twist of fate, is now a musical theatre student at his own real life Duke’s (I like to think you read Sing and thought, yep, that’s the life for me!). It’s beyond lucky—and a little hilarious—that I get to work with someone who completely gets the world I’m describing. I could thank you every day for the rest of my life and it wouldn’t be enough. You had me at “Seasons of Love.”
The hugest thank-you to all the glorious people at Macmillan—to the wonderful Venetia Gosling, for believing in Nettie’s story and taking a chance on her, and to Simran Sandhu and Cate Augustin for working with me to polish Sing into something lovely.
To Kat McKenna, Amber Ivatt, and Emma Quick, I am so glad that you are the fabulous people getting this book out into the world. You have all the ideas!
To my gorgeous pal Lucy Dawson, for helping me with everything from “how to do a first edit” (seriously), to guiding me through how to make the kids’ tea when I was on deadline and the cupboard was bare (“But I don’t even have toast”). Thank you for your patience with my many questions, and for your unwavering friendship. It means the world to me.
Huge thanks to copyeditor Veronica Lyons for helping me to find clarity in my writing, and to proofreader Emily Thomas—especially for checking my optimism when it comes to how long train journeys take! Thank you also to Tracey Ridgewell for setting the text, and to Viki Ottewill for taking in all the corrections.
To the amazing Keris Stainton, the biggest thank-you for introducing me to the wonderful world of YA, and for giving me the motivation to get to the end of my first draft.
Jo Stocker—when a random stranger walked into the YA department of Waterstones in Tunbridge Wells, asking ALL the questions, and you not only answered every one and gave advice freely, but also kindly offered to read their book…your feedback gave me the courage to submit to agents, and I cannot thank you enough.
To George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, for allowing me to use your lyrics on Kiki’s wall—I wanted your work to be an inspiration for her like it has for me in my life, both as a performer and a writer. Thank you.
To the amazing Tim Federle and Cheri Steinkellner, thank you for encouraging and inspiring me in those early days of Sister Act, when all I had was a secret blog and a vague thought that I might actually be able to do this one day. Your kind words were treasure and I still carry them with me.
To my husband Howard, you are everything. That is all. I love you.
To my parents, for supporting me through two very risky careers—first showbusiness, and now writing. Thank you for believing in me and never insisting I get a sensible job.
To Charlotte Parsons, for explaining technology to me (I will be making GIFs forevermore in your honor). Thank you to The JPA Company, my talented people, for helping me find emotionally appropriate songs for Nettie, and for the “teen lingo” help (eg. not allowing me to write phrases like “teen lingo”). You are all awesome.
To Eleanor Prescott, I don’t know where to start. Thank you for teaching me how to hone my words, how to shape my ideas into a real book, for being ever-encouraging and relentlessly optimistic. I’m so grateful to have you as a mentor and friend. To the NBTs—Nick, Clair, Suzanne, Ros, Kate, Catherine, Emilie, and especially Karl—thank you for your help and feedback, for reading my work at its worst and never judging me.
And finally, this. Once upon a time, I stood on a stage to thank people, and out of nerves I forgot the most important person. It still haunts me. So thank you Emily, for the other thing.