When you publish your first book, there are so many people who have helped you over the years that it’s impossible to thank them all. From teachers to critique partners to those who have offered support and encouragement, the list would be absolutely endless. But you know who you are, and thank you! Every one of you has contributed something.
First and foremost I want to thank my wife, Stephanie Burgis, who read this book more times than anyone should ever have to and had something helpful to say every time. I couldn’t have done this without you. I’d also like to thank those who critiqued various versions of the book: Tiffany Trent, Eugene Myers, Ari Goelman, Tricia Sullivan, Renee Sweet, and Nadia Williams. This book wouldn’t be half as good without the dedication and insights of my agent, Jennifer Laughran, and my editor, Christy Ottaviano. Thanks to both of you. Thank you, too, to designer Eileen Savage, editorial assistant Jessica Anderson, and the rest of the team at Macmillan who work so hard behind the scenes. I am truly grateful for everything you do. Thank you (again!) to Tiffany Trent, who was so enthusiastic about my first draft that she recommended me to her agent.
I probably learned more about being a writer at the Clarion West workshop than at any time before or since, so I’d like to give special thanks to my instructors Octavia Butler, Nalo Hopkinson, Bradley Denton, Connie Willis, Ellen Datlow, and Jack Womack, and a special shout-out to my incredibly talented classmates.
My high school English teacher, Mrs. Mapes, encouraged me to write when I had lots of enthusiasm but absolutely no talent. There should be more teachers like you.
I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to my parents-in-law, Kathy and Rich Burgis, for vast amounts of baby- and child-sitting when I wrote the second draft of this book. If they hadn’t been there, I think I’d still be working on it.
My journey toward being a writer started when my dad, Adrian Samphire, read me The Lord of the Rings as a child, and it’s been going on ever since. Thank you, Dad, for introducing me to that world, and to my mum, Beth Samphire, for being supportive, interested, and enthusiastic, even though I know these are not your kind of books! Thank you, too, to my brothers, Martin and Ben, for all your support.
And finally, I want to thank my two sons for their smiles and games, and for being so patient when I had to work on this. You inspire me to write books that I hope you will love.