by Tanya Byrne
Now I must thank the people who worked so hard to put this in your hands. My agent, the delightful and oh-so-patient Claire Wilson, without whom this book would never have been finished. My editors, Hannah Sheppard, Frankie Gray and Sherise Hobbs, without whom this book would be a mess and just about Bones. To the incomparable Sam Eades who is not only the best publicist an author could ask for, but always makes sure I have a brew. To the charming Lynsey Sutherland and everyone at Headline, who continue to overwhelm me with their talent and passion. To the booksellers and librarians who have supported me and thrust Heart-Shaped Bruise into the hands of so many readers, thank you.
Speaking of Heart-Shaped Bruise, this is a great chance to formally thank everyone who read and reviewed it, as well as the judges on the panels of the CWA Daggers, the National Book Awards, the Branford Boase and the Redbridge Children’s Book Award, who thought it worthy of nomination. You make me want to be a better writer.
But back to this book, thank you to Funmi Anazodo and Zaina Miuccia for answering all of my many, many questions. Oh and the poor police officer from Wiltshire police who I’m pretty sure thinks I murdered someone. To Godson Echebima for translating the Igbo and Fiona and Claire Hodge and Martha Close for letting me pillage their boarding-school stories. And not forgetting Sarah Genever, who drove me around Wiltshire in the relentless rain as I tried to imagine what Ostley would look like.
On a personal note, I must thank my fellow UKYA Crew – Amy McCulloch, Cat Clarke, James Dawson, James Smythe, Keris Stainton, Laure Eve, Tom Pollock and Will Hill – who have all been so supportive and pretty much kept me sane this year. Particularly Kim Curran, who has fed me tea and cake and told me I could do this while I’ve ugly cried more times than I care to mention. Much love to my friends Cristin Moor, Jade Bell and Kelly Bignall for just being brilliant, really, and for still being there when I was too busy to call them back or reply to their emails. Thank you, too, to my family – Carly, Martin, my mother and my nephew, Jacob, who has no clue what this writing malarkey is about, but will be bored senseless with stories about it one day.
And finally, thanks once more to you, lovely reader, for persevering through these acknowledgements, which are almost as long as the book. Your dedication is duly noted and very much appreciated. You’ve earned a cup of tea.