by Emily Paull
While a lot of these stories were written in moments of solitude, the act of writing itself has connected me to so many wonderful people—something I will always be thankful for. I consider myself extremely lucky to be a part of the vibrant writing community of Perth. There are so many more people to whom I am grateful than I will be able to name in these few short paragraphs.
To my family—my first readers and my captive audience. My parents, Megan and Greg, who never let me say I couldn’t do something when the self-doubt monster was growling at the door.
To my grandparents, Jim and Sallie Davies. I could not have done any of it without you. Thank you also for always giving me books and taking me to the library.
To Caroline Wood and the team at Margaret River Press, who believed in this project and made it all a reality.
To Camha Pham, copy editor extraordinaire, who polished these stories until they shone.
To Laurie Steed, who was my dream mentor and helped me whip these stories into shape.
To my first writers’ group—Louise Allan, Kristen Levitzke and Glen Hunting—who have given feedback on the works in this collection and on the novel that, as yet, has not found a home. Louise has also been on call for numerous pep talks and writerly advice, and I am forever grateful to have her in my life.
To Belinda Hermawan, who is my kindred spirit. Her feedback on my work pushed me to try harder, be better, get tougher and raise the standards by which I measure success, while at the same time making sure I take care of myself.
To my friends, near and far.
And finally, to Adam, who told me it was a matter of when I got published, rather than if. (You were right!)