by Lech Blaine
‘I don’t think it’s going anywhere, bro,’ said Nick.
There was no closure. Trauma doesn’t allow for a heart-warming moment of redemption. We kept persisting anyway, epic vessels of emotion, less of a danger to ourselves and more of an open secret to those around us.
Acknowledgements
Car Crash: A Memoir is a work of creative nonfiction, not journalism, reportage or a personal diary. Scenes have been recreated based on my memories, which are fallible – and were even before I suffered from a major trauma. At times, secondary events and characters have been streamlined to avoid confusing the reader with too much information. Vincent and Frida are composites of real people. This was done not just to simplify the narrative, but also to maintain the real individuals’ privacy.
It simply isn’t feasible to acknowledge everyone who has helped me personally since the accident, or professionally since I started to write about it. Car Crash: A Memoir is a tribute to those who’ve supported my writing career. My survival is the best possible testament to the people who’ve provided me with friendship.
As editor, nobody’s eyes have been more focused on my sentences and paragraphs than the vociferously supportive Julia Carlomagno, whose patience and empathy under pressure has been saintly. As publisher, Chris Feik’s quiet confidence in my prose has been the greatest game-changer of my professional development.
I’d like to acknowledge everyone who has populated the offices of Black Inc. throughout the publication process. Kudos to Erin Sandiford and Sophy Williams for finding an international publisher during a pandemic. Thanks to Sallie Butler for pushing my book into the right hands and organising events for its release, and Julian Welch for the stellar proofreading.
Nick Feik – editor of The Monthly – turned this one-trick memoirist into a journalist. He has made me a much better writer. I owe Morry Schwartz a huge debt for creating the publications that have given me so much intellectual sustenance, first as a teenage reader, and now – somehow – as a member of the Schwartz Media stable.
At the University of Queensland, Chris Somerville and Jack Vening told me to take writing seriously. Ash Hanson from Kill Your Darlings was my first source of editorial feedback for the earliest draft of Car Crash. Scribe Publications shortlisted an excerpt of that draft for their Scribe Nonfiction Prize for Young Writers in 2016 – the awards ceremony was where I first met Julia. Aviva Tuffield sent an email out of the blue asking me to send her the excerpt, and signed me to Black Inc.
Julianne Schultz, John Tague and Ash Hay from Griffith Review have been endlessly encouraging, and provided a regular home for my prose. In 2017, I received funding from a Queensland Literary Award, and undertook a mentorship with Kristina Olsson, whose infatuation with language was contagious.
Agent Benython Oldfield recruited me to Zeitgeist Media. He’s been a boundless sounding board since.
In 2017, I was lucky enough to meet Bri Lee, who inspired me to keep going, while making me feel as though I belonged to a kindred community of writers. Laura Elvery offered friendship and deft editing suggestions. Benjamin Law has become one of my most effusive champions. Helen Garner generously made time to read, and offered ruthless but illuminating critical feedback.
Thank you to Josh Durham for designing such a beautiful cover. Thank you to James Brickwood for the epic portrait on the back cover. Thank you to Archie Hamilton for cheering me on thirty seconds before the full-time hooter.
Greg Manthey and Andrew Fellenberg, human beings first and high-school teachers second, helped guide me through the aftermath of the car accident. Stephen Shaw saw a spark of creativity amid the darkness. He insisted that I pull my finger out. Thank you to Robert for your charitable contribution to my mental wellbeing.
The St Mary’s and Downlands seniors of 2009 hold a special place in my heart. Alice provided so much thankless sensitivity. Matt and Hayden read the earliest drafts of Car Crash and showed their souls to me, so that my confidence in the need for this project could grow. Georgia offered critical feedback and hours of reminiscence. Macca and Kev deserve a special mention for their unwavering mateship.
Thank you to Tim, Nick and Dom for letting me tell your stories. Thank you to Melissa for your consistent wisdom. Thank you to Linda for your shining kindness. Thank you to Nicole, Courtney, Erin, Sam and Tess for revisiting a difficult period.
Tom and Lenore Blaine won’t be alive to read Car Crash: A Memoir, but it wouldn’t exist without his gift of self-belief or her gift of literature. I’m forever indebted to their decision to foster Steven, John, Rebecca and Hannah, whose own families have helped me endure the grief of our parents’ passing. The six of them are my biggest influences. Hannah has been my loudest cheerleader and staunchest source of love.