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THE RHYTHM OF MY SOUL is a book I’ve wanted to write for a long, long time. I’ve always been fascinated by ballet, and my idea for a story about elite ballet dancers competing in a rather cutthroat industry just would not stop simmering in my mind. I was always a bit apprehensive about writing this book though, as I knew little about the industry from an insider’s perspective.
Luckily, in writing this book, I met some amazing ballet dancers who helped me with my research: Sabine Deixler, Lilli Nocon, Garret McNally, Krystal Descano, Andrea Valeria, Larissa Loren Walker, and Sien H. To all of you: thank you so much for taking the time to not only answer all my questions but to also read extracts to comment on authenticity and for telling me about your own experiences. I couldn’t have written this story without you!
A huge thank you goes to my sensitivity readers and the experts I consulted: Elisabeth TenBrink Kelley, Chelsea Hindle, Maria Guglielmo, Kaitlin Maynard, Leaf Domantas, Marisa Manuel, Sarah Clark, Sefanya Hiennadi, Jennifer Webb, Debbie Hamilton, John Kalb, Amy Moran, Becky Smith, and Tripp Smith.
I must also thank my wonderful beta-readers: Linda Izquierdo Ross, Imogen Grant, Sarah Anderson, and Kate Kenzie. Writing this book was certainly a daunting process, and all of you made it so much easier.
I’m also so lucky that one of my beta-readers is my cover designer; Sarah Anderson, not only are you one of the kindest people I know, but you’re so talented. I love the designs you created for The Rhythm of My Soul!
To all the writers in my writing circles and critique groups: thank you so much for always being supportive, for encouraging me, for organizing writing sprints, and more.
To my family: Mum, Dad, Sam, Grandad, and Gill. Thank you for always supporting me.
And to my partner, Michael: thank you for always being so encouraging.