Book of the Just
Page 36
My agent, Susan Finesman, not only takes care of the tedious, wonky, and wary bits of the writing business for me, but she’s also a kindred spirit and a friend who inspires me, dreams with me, and kicks me in the butt when I need it.
Some people seem to have all the answers you need just when you need them. Amy Kerr is that guru for me. She is always there when I ask for help, and she’s always thoughtful and wise—even though she doesn’t like Star Wars. (May the Force be with you, Amy.)
And at least I have my younger brother, Shane, who loves a good lightsaber duel and hours-long chat about galaxies far, far away. My fellow rebel and resister, he has always been in my corner, patching up life things and tech things with grace and speed.
I mention last the people who come first in my life.
My sweet boyo joyfully took up the job of gentle taskmaster and kept me on track. He insisted that I stop after only one round of Yoshi and chastised me when I started to slide onto the couch beside him for an episode of Loud House, telling me instead to go work on my book. He was waiting for me when I was done and fed me daily encouragement and snuggles, without which I would have surely foundered.
The girl kid fed me music and filled my well when it ran dry. I gave her sketchy descriptions of spoiler-free plot and a sense of the general tone, and she built me playlists that gave me inspiration and pulled out just the right emotional notes. She even found an obscure cover of “Let It Be” that saved a scene and made it soar.
Greg, my partner in everything, did everything. He gave me insight into Angelo when the dude frustrated me more than once. He freed up my time so I could write. He did the laundry, the grocery shopping, the homeschooling, the kid-carting. He read for me—again and again. He edited, line edited, copyedited. And then he did it all again when I asked. He was my shoulder to cry on, my punching bag when I was angry, my touchstone when I was lost. He is my everything.
BOOK OF THE JUST
Pegasus Books Ltd.
148 W 37th Street, 13th Floor
New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2018 Dana Chamblee Carpenter
First Pegasus Books edition October 2018
Interior design by Maria Fernandez
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher, except by reviewers who may quote brief excerpts in connection with a review in a newspaper, magazine, or electronic publication; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other, without written permission from the publisher.
The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:
ISBN: 978-1-68177-858-7
ISBN: 9781681779232 (ebk.)
Distributed by W. W. Norton & Company