by Bre Hall
To Allison and the rest of my writing group from American College Dublin—Alex, Sarah, Suzzanna, Sende, and Lynetta. Your excitement, insight, and support for this novel is what kept me typing day after day. Thank you.
To Sean O’Reilly, who taught me to be a better writer by challenging me with every new draft of every story, and for inspiring me to keep going. Thank you.
To Carlo Gébler, novel writing instructor extraordinaire. This novel would have never gotten off the ground without your guidance. Without your questioning my every motive for every character. Without your pleading for me to keep Ren’s visits to the past chronological. Thank you.
To Caroline and Jonathan. I fleshed out the majority of this novel in your kitchen, overlooking the breathtaking Irish countryside, with a cup of tea beside me until the evening, when I switched to gin, but by that point, no writing could be done. Only delicious dinners and midnight conversations about anything and everything. By offering up a sanctuary to escape to, you not only fueled my writing, but allowed me the important room to breathe. Thank you.
Finally, to my new-found Instagram family. The lovers of writing and books I’ve met on Insta have been overwhelmingly positive and supportive right from the beginning. Thank you.
I have found a special kind of home in books. I hope you have too. If you enjoyed this novel, please consider leaving a review so that others may stumble upon the world of Ren and her Dark Soul Experiments.
About the Author
Bre Hall was raised in small-town Kansas, which has greatly influenced her writing. She holds two degrees in Creative Writing: A BA from Pacific University and an MFA from American College Dublin. She is the author of the novel, Asphalt Chasers, and a short story collection, Flatlands. Her short fiction has also appeared in various online journals. When she isn’t writing, she’s hiking, kayaking, or scheming up ways to get back to Ireland. She currently resides in Portland, Oregon, where she survives off of constant rain showers and hot cups of tea.