Did you hear something, Katie?
Nope. Did you?
No. I didn’t see anything either. Certainly not a six-foot-something guy who should know better.
Yeah. Because he disappeared. And is staying safe. Somewhere far, far away from here. Where no one knows about him or could possibly find him and cart him off for science experiments. Where he can be his own person.
A real human being.
But I–
The End
Acknowledgements
If you’re reading this message it means my second book has successfully been published and is a real thing that really exists, which, wow, how incredible is that? Very incredible, obviously.
Although my part in the creation of this book involves mostly being alone in a dark, cold room, hunched over a laptop and snarling at anyone who dares interrupt me like the swamp goblin I secretly am, there are actually a great many people who helped bring it to life, onto shelves and into readers’ hands.
Thank you to my agent, Danielle Binks, for being the best champion and sounding board, for encouraging me to write my strange little ‘Untitled Weird Sciencey Thing’, and for coming up with the perfect title that is infinitely superior to the aforementioned ‘Untitled Weird Sciencey Thing’. Thank you also to Jacinta di Mase and Natasha Solomun of Jacinta di Mase Management; I’m honoured to have your whole powerful girl gang on my side.
Thank you to the wonderful team at Pan Macmillan, especially Claire Craig and Georgia Douglas, who are always so supportive, helpful and wildly talented. I’m also grateful for the editing skills of Brianne Collins and the keen proofreading eye of Rebecca Hamilton. Thank you also to Allie Schotte and Adrik Kemp for all things publicity and marketing.
Thank you to Astred Hicks for the absolutely adorable cover for You Were Made For Me, which looks right at home next to the equally adorable What I Like About Me.
Thank you to Mari Diaz, Michaela Garcia, Jay Dalziel, Tobias Madden, Rachel Nacilla and Natalia Wikana, who each gave me guidance and feedback on the authenticity of my characters, and made this book so much stronger as a result.
Thank you to Elspeth Lamorte and Sofia Casanova for helping me with the rewriting process, for always being encouraging and supportive, and most especially for K-drama watch parties. Thank you also to Melanie Mutch for being a constant source of comfort, feedback, advice, support, joy and BTS memes. I’m also grateful to Amanda Salles, Kathleen Cusack and Rebecca Finn for their continued friendship and cheerleading.
Thank you to my family: my husband, my parents, my brother, as well as the Zampa, Rowlands, Spiteri and Guillaume clans. You all helped shape who I am, and who I am shaped this book. Thanks especially to my husband, Chris Guillaume, for enduring my swamp goblin behaviour, making me lots of dinners and even more tea, and always being my first reader. And a big thank you to my mum, Alison Zampa, who is still my number one fan and always only a phone call away. She told me to state she’s the best mum in the world, but I probably would have said that anyway.
Thank you to my dogs, who yes, deserve their own space. To Ollie and Jasper for being my constant, cuddly company. To Jed and Tilly and Sue Sue and Ralph too. Max is a bit of all of them wrapped up in one giant fluff ball.
Finally, to everyone – friends, family, colleagues, teachers, booksellers, librarians, readers, writers, strangers – who has helped me on this author journey. Who has read my writing, attended events, sent me messages, shared my book and just generally cheered me on. There are literally too many of you to name here, which is a very lovely problem to have. Just know your support means the world to me. Thank you.
About the author
Jenna Guillaume is a journalist and author who grew up in Wollongong and now lives in Sydney. In addition to Young Adult fiction, Jenna writes for publications such as BuzzFeed, Junkee, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Guardian about very important things like pop culture, identity, feminism, social media, and her fave OTPs.
Previously, Jenna was editor-at-large for BuzzFeed Australia and features editor at Girlfriend magazine. You Were Made for Me is her second novel.
Also by Jenna Guillaume
What I Like About Me
You know those movies where teenagers have the summer of their lives?
This summer is probably not going to be that.
Here lies Maisie Martin, dead from embarrassment, aged sixteen.
The last thing Maisie Martin thought she’d be doing this summer is entering a beauty pageant.
Not when she’s spent most of her life hiding her body from everyone.
Not when her Dad is AWOL for Christmas and her best friend starts going out with the boy she’s always loved.
But Maisie’s got something to prove. And she’s not going to let anything or anyone – including herself – hold her back.
Praise for What I Like About Me
‘I wish I could have read this when I was fifteen – it would have changed everything.’ Claire Christian, author of Beautiful Mess
‘Coming of age in the new age requires fresh narratives in unsure times, and Guillaume chooses to uplift rather than shoot teenagers in a barrel. She teaches body positivity, support networks and shuns not talking about your problems. And that’s laudable.’ Artshub (starred review)
First published 2020 in Pan by Pan Macmillan Australia Pty Ltd
1 Market Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 2000
Copyright © Jenna Guillaume 2020
The moral right of the author to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted.
All rights reserved. This publication (or any part of it) may not be reproduced or transmitted, copied, stored, distributed or otherwise made available by any person or entity (including Google, Amazon or similar organisations), in any form (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical) or by any means (photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise) without prior written permission from the publisher.
This ebook may not include illustrations and/or photographs that may have been in the print edition.
Cataloguing-in-Publication entry is available
from the National Library of Australia
http://catalogue.nla.gov.au
EPUB format: 9781760982591
Cover design and illustration: Astred Hicks, Design Cherry
The author and the publisher have made every effort to contact copyright holders for material used in this book. Any person or organisation that may have been overlooked should contact the publisher.
The characters in this book are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
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