Writing is not a solo sport, and I have so many people to thank for helping turn this lifelong dream into a reality.
First and foremost, none of this would be possible without my amazing agent, Joanna MacKenzie. The $29 I spent for ten minutes with you at the Writing Workshop of Chicago was the best money I’ve ever spent. Thank you for believing in me, for helping to make this story stronger, and for finding it a wonderful home.
To Tessa Woodward, my editor at William Morrow, thank you for taking a chance on a debut author and bringing Alexis and CeCe’s story to the world. I’ll forever be grateful.
There aren’t enough words to thank Bradeigh Godfrey, the world’s best critique partner. Thank you for pushing me when I need to be pushed, encouraging me when I need to be encouraged, and being swoontastic when I need to add a little swoon. I can’t wait until the world discovers how amazing you are.
I owe so much to Kristie Cain Raymer for sharing a piece of her and Ian’s story with me. Thank you for your friendship and for telling me your stories, even when it wasn’t easy. I will always be a #RaymerWarrior.
Thank you times a million to my writing tribe. The Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA) transformed my writing life and introduced me to “my people.” I am proud and honored to be part of such an incredible organization.
I’m grateful for the subgroups I’ve found and formed along the way—first and foremost, the Fictionistas, who are always there for a #spitball and support. I was never alone on this journey thanks to the Querying Support group, the Sub Support group, and now, the 2020 Debuts with help and guidance from Mike Chen and the 2019 group and Jennifer Klepper and the 2018 group. I can’t wait to pay your kindness forward. And, of course, the Every Damn Day Writers, who keep me inspired and accountable.
Alexis and Tommy have been around for a very long time, so I have to thank my first-ever critique group, Catherine Becker, Shannon Heffernan, Paige Warren, and Whitney Wolf, for helping to shape them both. And my local Slice of Fiction ladies, Mary Chase, Amy Melnicsak, Kasia Manolas, and Nancy Johnson, who I have to thank for many things, including opening my eyes to the unique way people with lung cancer are treated.
So many writers have helped me by looking at my pages, critiquing my query letters, or giving general advice, including: Lainey Cameron (the best writing conference roommate); Sharon Peterson; Julie Carrick Dalton; Orly Konig; Christine Adler; Kathleen West, who has been in step with me on this crazy journey; Sheri Taylor-Emery; Natalia Iwanyckyj; Peggy Finck (with her mad query skills); Michele Montgomery; Lisa Montanaro; Jessica Zimmerman Smith; Meghan Scott Molin; Suanne Schafer; Jessie Starr; Fern Ronay; Brenda Linskey; Gisèle Lewis; Karen Stensgaard; and everyone in the Women’s Fiction Critique Group. An additional thank-you to Abby Saul for the early revision help, and to Esi Sogah and Alicia Clancy.
I have been fortunate to have so many friends who have been through this journey before, and I am beyond grateful for their friendship, support, and advice. Thank you to Barbara Claypole White, Heather Webb, Kristin Rockaway, Kathleen Barber, Kimmery Martin, Julie Clark, Erin Bartles, Liz Fenton, Colleen Oakley, Meg Donohue, Laura Drake, Rea Frey, and Amy Mason Doan. A special thanks to Kristin Harmel for showing me the way early on, telling me how not to format a manuscript, and to Camille Pagán for becoming a mentor and a friend.
Thank you to Grant Faulkner for starting National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)—the main reason I was able to write the first draft of this book in two months, which is fourteen years and ten months faster than I wrote my first manuscript.
I’m never finished learning, and I owe so much to my teachers along the way, including Josh Russell, Jennie Nash, Donald Maass, the Muse and the Marketplace, Writer Unboxed, StoryStudio Chicago, the Marks of the Bestseller Experiment, and my writing teachers at Clayton High, the University of Kansas, and the University of Florida. Go Gators!
There’s a reason this book is dedicated to my family. Thank you to my mom, Kathy Hammer—who, for the record, I have a great relationship with—for being one of my best friends and biggest fans from day one. To my dad, Dr. Randy Hammer, who, like Tommy, makes the world’s best cream cheese eggs, gives great advice, and is always one of my most enthusiastic readers. And to Elizabeth Murray, my sister by chance and friend by choice. Thank you for your support and excitement, and for giving me one of my favorite job titles: aunt.
Thank you to the Lewin, Berger, Hammer, and Block families. And to my grandparents, Elaine and Joe Berger and Annette and Buddy Hammer, who are always in my heart. Thank you to Nick Murray, Dylan Murray, Alex “Bear-Bear” Murray, and to Carlene Jarrett.
Friends are the family you choose, and I’ve got some of the best. Thank you, Meg McKeen, for being the best Myrna a girl could ask for. To Jenna Shulman, my BFFAEAE; Christina Williams for always having my back, DJ Johnson and Chardy McEwan, Amy Wallace, Sally MF Bright, Amy Gerhartz and the rest of MyGirls, Libby Love; Krissie Callahan, Jeff and Julie Johnson, Brian and Kristen Fechino, Michelle Dash, Shana Freedman, and Marija McPherson.
To Tom Piazza and the McGee’s Sunday Funday crew; Mia Pfifer; Meredith Bailey; Katie Ross; the Sunday Dinner Club; Ken Block and the Rock Boat family; Beth Gosnell and the Rock by the Sea family; the Charleston Place crew; the men of LOVESWEAT: Steve Everett, Paul Pfau, JD Eicher, and Connor Pledger. To Jen Wedick for all the high fives, Will Byington for the friendship and the photos, David Boran for help with the cooking terms, and Dr. Carla Lewin and Lauren Black for the oxygen education. And to Andrea Kate of Great Thoughts’ Great Readers.
Thank you to my past and present FCB Chicago family for the support and encouragement. To Stump Mahoney for the music help; Kevin Grady, Jennifer Ludwig, Paige Miller, Kristin Zuccarini, Angela Carlson, and So A Ryu for your design expertise; Lauren Cabot Altergott for being one of my first readers; my CB team; and Teddy Brown for being a great boss and friend (most of the time). While I’m on the topic of my other career (and Alexis’s), thank you to GirlsDay and the Three Percent Conference for making the advertising industry a better place for everyone to work.
Thank you to all the Starbucks I have regulared for providing a great environment to write and having the “Save to Spotify” feature on your app for my writing playlist. And, speaking of music, I’d like to thank some of the artists who inspire me and frequently play before, during, and after my writing sessions: Red Wanting Blue, Will Hoge, The Alternate Routes, Aslyn, Shawn Mullins, Stephen Kellogg, Brandi Carlile, Matt Nathanson, Emerson Hart, and Sister Hazel.
For all the behind-the-scenes work, thank you to Kristin Nelson, Brian Nelson, Tallahj Curry, Samantha Cronin, and Angie Hodapp of the Nelson Literary Agency. Many thanks to Alice Lawson at Gersh and my entire team at HarperCollins: Elle Keck, Molly Waxman, Rachel Meyers, Robin Barletta, Jennifer Hart, Kelly Rudolph, Karen Richardson, Mumtaz Mustafa, Christina Joell, and Maureen Cole. Also to Crystal Patriarche and the BookSparks team.
Thank you to the booksellers, book reviewers, bloggers, bookstagrammers, and the Tall Poppy Writers, and last but certainly not least, thank you to the readers for choosing to spend time with this story. I’m grateful, and I’d love to hear from you online at AlisonHammer.com or @ThisHammer on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.