The Perfect Girlfriend
Page 30
Nate owed me love and respect all those years ago, and he still owes me that. He’ll always owe me that.
Nate doesn’t move, so I walk over and close the door. We’re alone. Just the two of us.
The dream is real. I’ve fixed everything and put us back together again.
I was right to persevere, to not accept anything less. We now have a fresh start; a whole new understanding.
The only way it can ever be.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Writing this was difficult because there really are so many people to thank that it was hard to even begin. After much deliberation (I wrote a lot of lists, concerned about unintentionally leaving someone out), I decided to just go for it, to try and express as much heartfelt appreciation as best I can.
A huge thank you to Sophie Lambert, my incredible agent, who is wise, kind and one of the most dedicated, hard-working people I have ever met. Thanks for your fantastic insight, patience, brilliant guidance and for making my dream come true. Much gratitude also goes to Alexander Cochran, Emma Finn, Alexandra McNicoll, Jake Smith-Bosanquet and, of course, the wider team at C+W Agency.
Another very big thank you to the wonderful Wildfire trio and brilliant editors, Kate Stephenson, Alex Clarke and Ella Gordon – an amazing team with endless energy and enthusiasm, who are also incredibly insightful. They are a real pleasure to work with and I feel so grateful to be a part of the family. Again, these thanks are also extended to the wider team at Headline – Viviane Basset, Becky Hunter, Frances Doyle, Ellie Wood, Becky Bader, Siobhan Hooper and Sarah Badhan, and to Shan Morley Jones and Rhian McKay for their expertise and keen eyes.
My decision, and journey, to ‘become a writer’ took a number of years. I slowly began to immerse myself into the writing world. I attended literary festivals, courses, meet-the-author events and this feels like a good point to give a special mention to Jenny Ashcroft, who has been an immense source of loyal support and generous help, and a fantastic listening ear. Thank you too to Emily Barr and Craig Green for your very kind encouragement. All very much appreciated.
Mention and thanks also goes to my local creative writing tutor, Nicky Morris, who encouraged me to broaden my writing skills and who first gave me the confidence to read my work out loud. I have fond memories of swapping stories on Tuesday evenings. And to all my other local talented writer friends and the dedicated group who run the fantastic Hampshire Writers’ Society; their events are varied and well worth attending.
In 2014, having given up my flying career, I joined the ‘Writing a Novel’ course at the Faber Academy. There, under the skilful guidance of course director, Richard Skinner (thank you so much for encouraging me to ‘keep going’ and for giving me the confidence to trust my instinct with this book), not only did I learn so much of great value, I was very fortunate to join an incredible group. They are a bunch of talented, supportive, generous writers. We still meet regularly to share successes and buoy each other up during the inevitable hard times – wine is often involved too! Thank you and thank you again Laura, Fiona, Mia, Joe, Rose, Rohan, Antonia, Jess, Roger, Maggie, Phil and Helen. For everything.
Much gratitude to my early readers, Geraldine (who read the entire book several times), all my Faber group once again, and, for their help and advice, many thanks also go to Amanda, Ian, Lindsay, Roy and Walter. Thank you all for being so generous with your time and your wise, valuable feedback.
My husband never once questioned my desire to become a published author. Ever. And he must’ve been tempted many, many times. Thank you for your unwavering belief, support and love. And for my three sons who make me realise how time really does fly, and the need to fill it with the people and things that matter.
To the rest of my family: my mum, dad and sister, with lots of love. For always making me believe that I can achieve anything. And to my in-laws for their unquestioning support too. Much appreciation and gratitude for all the childcare offered by both sides of the family, because without the team work, I would not have been able to attend the courses and events which have led up to this. I’m so relieved that your collective faith in me has led to this.
Almost last, but of course, never least, thanks to my many wonderful, supportive, kind, funny, loyal, generous friends, some of whom are scattered around the world, but who are always in my heart. Without you, life would not be as much fun – you force me out of my shell. I wrote a list (another one!) but it was far too long, so all I can do is write a huge, all-encompassing thank you for everything, for the shared experiences, for being there. Always. You definitely know who you are. Also, for believing that I could write a book. And to all my flying friends, past and present, there will always be a big part of me that misses the airline world: the camaraderie, the team spirit.
Because this is not an exhaustive thank you list, I could go on and on. And on. But, as I clearly must end somewhere, my final thank you has to go to readers; an enormous thank you for choosing to read this book.
About the Author
Karen Hamilton spent her childhood in Angola, Zimbabwe, Belgium and Italy and worked as a flight attendant for many years. Karen is a recent graduate of the Faber Academy and, having now put down roots in Hampshire to raise her young family with her husband, she satisfies her wanderlust by exploring the world through her writing. The Perfect Girlfriend is her first novel.