Under the Whispering Door is a deeply personal story to me; therefore, it was very hard to write. It took a lot out of me to finish, as it forced me to explore my own grief over losing someone I loved very much, more than I ever had before—outside of therapy, at least. There is a catharsis to grief, though we don’t usually see that in the midst of it. I won’t say writing this book helped heal me, because that would be a lie. Instead, I’ll say that it left me feeling a bit more hopeful than I had before, bittersweetly so. If you live long enough to learn to love someone, you’ll know grief at one point or another. That’s just how the world works.
Some amazing people helped bring this book to you, so I’d like to thank them now.
First is Deidre Knight, my agent, who fiercely champions my books and believes in them, perhaps more than anyone else. She is the best agent an author could ask for. Thanks to Deidre and the team at The Knight Agency, including Elaine Spencer, who handles all the foreign rights to my books. She’s the reason The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door are being translated into so many different languages.
Ali Fisher, my editor, gave me the absolute best writing advice I’ve ever gotten. While we were in the middle of edits for this book, she told me one word that changed how I looked at Wallace’s story: decentralize. That won’t mean much to you, but believe me when I say that it was like the sun bursting through the clouds for the first time in weeks, and it allowed me to put the focus where it should’ve been in the first place. This story is as good as it is because of her. Thanks, Ali.
Also on the editing side is assistant editor Kristin Temple. Kristin had key input on the character of the Manager (as I tend to try to break my own in-world rules), and that strange boy who is not really a boy is who he is because of her. Thanks, Kristin.
Next, the sensitivity readers. Not to diminish the work anyone else did on this book, but the sensitivity readers were, perhaps, some of the most important. Of the five central characters—Wallace, Hugo, Nelson, Mei, and Apollo—three are characters of color. The sensitivity readers sifted through various iterations with a fine-toothed comb and provided extremely beneficial notes. I’d like to thank the sensitivity readers at Tessera Editorial, as well as moukies, who made the character of Hugo that much better.
Saraciea Fennell and Anneliese Merz are my publicists and cheerleaders, and all around some of the best people an author could ask for on their team. I don’t know how they do what they do, but we’re all the better for them and the tireless work they do.
The higher up are Tor Publisher Devi Pillai, President of TDA Fritz Foy, VP and Director of Marketing Eileen Lawrence, Executive of Publicity Sarah Reidy, VP of Marketing and Publicity Lucille Rettino, and Chairman/Founder of TDA Tom Doherty. They believe in the power of queer storytelling, and I’m grateful they are letting me make the fantasy genre that much gayer.
Becky Yeager is the marketing lead, meaning it’s her job to get the word out about my books. One of the big reasons they’ve been read as widely as they have is her work. Thanks, Becky.
Rachel Taylor, the digital marketing coordinator, runs the Tor social-media accounts and makes sure everyone sees my dumb tweets about my books. Thanks, Rachel.
On the production side of things, you have production editor Melanie Sanders, production manager Steven Bucsok, interior designer Heather Saunders, and jacket designer Katie Klimowicz. They make everything look as good as it does. In addition, I’d like to thank Michelle Foytek, senior manager of publishing operations, who coordinates with production to get all the exclusive materials into the right editions.
And the jacket, man. The jacket. Go stare at it for just a moment. See how freaking rad that is? That’s because of Red Nose Studios. Chris has the uncanny ability to somehow dig around in my brain and make my imagination come to life in the form of the amazing jacket art he’s made for me. I am in constant awe of the work he does. Thanks, Chris.
I’d also like to thank the Macmillan sales team for all their support and hard work in getting this book—and all my others—out to bookstores everywhere. They are the best cheerleaders an author could ask for.
Thanks to Lynn and Mia, my beta readers. They get to read the stories before anyone else, and so far, they haven’t run screaming yet, so I count that as a win.
Thank you to Barnes & Noble for selecting Under the Whispering Door as an exclusive edition (if you haven’t seen the little something extra in the B&N edition, you should definitely check that out). Also, to the indie booksellers and librarians all over the world who’ve championed my books to readers, thank you. I am forever in your debt and will do whatever you ask of me, even if that means helping you hide a body.
Last, to you, the reader. Because of you, I get to do this whole writing thing as my job. Thank you for letting me do what I love most. I can’t wait for you to see what comes next.
TJ Klune
April 11, 2021