ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We are grateful to our contributors for their beautiful essays. Much of their writing and revision took place during the pandemic, and we appreciate them persevering alongside us through unimaginable circumstances. This book would not be possible without them.

To our agent, Rayhané Sanders, who was excited about this project from the beginning: thank you for providing invaluable support at every stage, including helping us assemble our lineup of contributors.

Our deepest thanks to the entire Catapult team, including Nicole Caputo, our cover designer; Colin Legerton, our eagle-eyed copy editor; Selihah White, our publicist; and especially our editor, Leigh Newman, for being this project’s champion and sounding board. We’re so happy to call Catapult home.

Finally, to our extraordinary friends, families, and partners, Alan Scherstuhl and Philip Sayers, whose love and encouragement carried us through the hardest of days: thank you.