To the Central Georgia Alzheimer’s Association, specifically Karen Kinsler, Linda Thornbury, Mott Smith, and Kristie Touchton: I can’t thank you all enough for doing what so many people need you to and what you did for me, which is raising awareness about Alzheimer’s disease. I appreciate your role in bringing Eldred to life. He’s written for you and the community of patients and caregivers you work so tirelessly to support. I hope you’ll love him as much as I love all of you!
One thing I learned quickly in this profession was finding kindred spirits is important. Thank you to my Purgies, Pitizens, and Y-Nots for your support, advice, fresh eyes, and pep talks. Please never get off my lawn.
There aren’t words to thank special friends who lent serious moral support to my writing process and career: Emily Rose Brunner, Nikki Vincent, and Sasha Penndorf. Thank you a million times over for giving me time and sanity to work as well as a willing ear if needed. To my theatre families who give me a place to be somewhere OTHER than work for a while, but who also are always ready to step up and support my work, too, I love you all. To Will Crews, Danielle Thuen, Meg Abney, and Brian Woods, who are always ready to jump in two-feet-first if I need help or a laugh when I’m overwhelmed—you guys are probably the reason I’m not in a padded room yet.
To Courtney: You’ll never know quite how much your support really means to me. The fact that you believe in me is a support special to me in ways I can’t quite describe. Maybe it’s because as siblings, we tended to pit ourselves against each other. Maybe it’s because I happen to know you have very selective tastes and hold said tastes to a high standard. But this year, you’ve supported me one hundred percent both in book writing and in a dark personal moment of my life, and it’s something I will never forget. Thank you.
To Mom: Thank you for always believing in me, for being my sounding board, my cheerleader, my warm hug, my excited phone call, and my biggest fan. You will always be one of the people I’m most excited to hand over a book to read and hear what you think, because your opinion has always been so vital to me. I love you.
To Dad: I know you had a dream once that couldn’t come to fruition for reasons outside your control. But you didn’t let that stop you from having new goals and dreams and striving for them, and as I’ve grown up, I’ve become more and more aware that one of those new goals you decided you’d strive for was helping your daughters see their dreams come alive. But I’m here to tell you, they wouldn’t have without you and Mom. You taught me the perseverance and passion, and you also gave me the push to go for them. I won’t ever forget you did. I love you.
To Ashlee: Shit, son. What do I say here? You’re the glitter that makes the darkest of my days go bright. You’re the one I want to spend bright, sunny afternoons inside, sitting on the computer, with. You’re the one there to tell me what I feel or think when I’m not sure where I am, because . . . how else am I gonna know? So to finish out this thank-you, a poem: The Thing shirts are red, the Things’ hair is blue. Jesus holds dance parties and is awesome, and So. Are. You. (Yep. That’s where your acknowledgments have gone . . .)
To the littlest members of my family: This time, I don’t just want you to know when one day you read this that when I wrote it, I loved you. I want you to know that even back then, you were why. Your presences in my life put energy and hope and inspiration in my soul. Thank you both just for being who you are, because just the presence of those two sweet, amazing souls has put words into mine.
For David: I’ve always been ambitious and had this dream. I thought if I worked hard enough, I could persevere. And yet . . . it’s no coincidence in my mind or heart that since “us,” I’ve started writing novels again when I’d stopped because I just didn’t have the passion anymore. It’s no coincidence in my mind or heart that since “us,” I’ve signed with a great agent, sold four books in the US and two in Germany while continuing to write others, when before, I’d practically given up. I guess it turns out that even if I’ve written the books and worked hard and persevered, before, there was a piece of the puzzle missing. A vital part absent, keeping things from working just enough that they wouldn’t. Thank you for being my missing piece, but thank you even more for being found.
And last but certainly not least, to my readers for joining Jenna on her latest adventure: A lot of authors say that they write for themselves and that either other people will like it or they won’t. For me, that is not true. I write for you, because you’ve trusted me with your time and energy. You’ve invested in me. You’re the ones who love my characters as much as I do (if not more at times!), and you’re the ones who deserve every bit of the story you opened this book hoping to get. So thank you all, for trusting me to entertain you. Thank you for jumping into my story and letting it take you away. I hope it has brought you much excitement, many surprises, and just enough thrill to keep your heart pounding at just the right pace. And as always, I hope it kept you reading late into the night!
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