I decided I wanted to become a writer when I was ten years old. (Before that, I wanted to be Wonder Woman.) I didn’t know any writers, though, and wasn’t sure it was possible for an ordinary person to become a writer. In my mind, all writers were mythical. Or dead.
And then my friend loaned me a book with a girl holding a glowing sword on the cover. “You’ll love this,” she said. It was Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce, a fantasy adventure about a girl who disguises herself as a boy in order to become the first female knight in her medieval land.
When I closed that book, I remember having one very clear thought: “If Alanna can become a knight, then I can become a writer.”
That book changed my life.
Fast forward to 1999, and I had the chance to meet Tamora Pierce at Boskone, a Boston-based SF/fantasy convention. And I discovered that she is as awesome, greathearted, and badass as any of her characters. We became friends after that, and when my first book was published in 2007, Tammy was the first person to send me flowers.
So that’s why this book is dedicated to her. And that’s why Tamra is named Tamra, after Tamora. I wanted to write a character as badass as she is.
I believe that fantasy is a literature of hope and empowerment. It can serve as a light in the darkness, as a guide toward strength, and as an escape from pain. It is my secret hope that someone will read Tamra and Raia’s story and realize that they can be who they want to be, that they can shape the world, that they can race the sands—and win.
I’d like to thank my phenomenal editor, David Pomerico, for taming the kehoks with me, and my incredible agent, Andrea Somberg, for racing with me from the start. I’d also like to thank Jennifer Brehl, Mireya Chiriboga, Chris Connolly, Kathleen Cook, Kara Coughlin, Angela Craft, Michelle Forde, Pam Jaffee, Ronnie Kutys, Lainey Mays, Debbie Mercer, Virginia Stanley, Kayleigh Webb, and all the other amazing people at HarperCollins who brought this book to life!
And a special thank-you to my husband, my children, my family, and my friends. You make life worth living and races worth running (in a metaphorical way, of course—we all know I’d rather be reading than running). If I were to be reborn, I’d hope to be reborn with you.