Tamzin, I don’t think I would have decided to go forward with publishing this book without your encouragement. You were excited about it from the first time I told you about the story and you immediately wanted to know more. You read the first draft in one day and have had endless enthusiasm and encouragement ever since. Through all my moments of worry and self-doubt you’ve been there to support me and have believed in me when I struggled to believe in myself. Our friendship has been special from the first day we finally met in person, and in London of all places! You understand me and Eleanor so perfectly, I couldn’t have gotten through the editing process without you. You helped me with a title and an ending when I was struggling with both and I know you’ve been holding my hand throughout this entire process through our endless WhatsApp messages, FaceTime calls, and pushing the limits of Marco Polo. And last but not least, thank you for helping me with Jack’s Northern accent, just when I thought I couldn’t love that character any more, you helped me add a bit more personality to him! I’m glad Eleanor has a friend like Jack, and I’m so grateful to have a friend like you!
Lisa, thank you so much. Not only for being an amazing sister but for also being such a brilliant artist. You took my idea for a cover and brought it to life even better than I imagined. The little details, that only I will fully appreciate, make me so happy every time I look at the cover. I’m so glad you got to be a part of this book and I’m honored to have your illustration on the cover.
To my test readers…Elizabeth, Shannon, Jess, Hannah, and Nicole. You took your valuable time to read part or all of an early draft of this book and give me feedback. Your feedback helped so much, both in terms of fixing the things that weren’t quite working or making me feel better and validated about the parts that were working great. Writing can be a very isolating process and it’s easy to get caught up in my own head and second guess everything. Your feedback helped me realize that I was doing a lot better than I realized and made me even more excited to finally be able to share it with others. Thank you so much for all your help and encouragement!
Finally, to my online community on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and my blog. For more than three years now, you all have been so unbelievably supportive and encouraging of all my endeavors. You’ve helped me in more ways than you could possibly know and I am profoundly grateful for each and every one of you. You’ve followed every step of the journey in publishing this book and have been excited to read it from the first time I mentioned it. You’ve encouraged me and reassured me every step of the way and I couldn’t have done this without you. For someone who is never short of words in my vlogs and can’t stop talking, I somehow don’t have enough words to express my gratitude for you all and “thank you” just isn’t enough, but it will have to do. So, thank you, a million times, thank you.
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Thank you for reading A Brave Start! Stay tuned for further adventures with Eleanor, Patrick and all their friends in future installments in the Across the Pond series!
Connect with me on social media and let me know what you think of the book! And follow along to stay updated on behind the scenes of writing, where I get my inspiration, deleted scenes and short stories, and updates on new work!
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Instagram: @jesuisjustemoi
Twitter: @SeversonSimotti
Facebook Group: Across the Pond Book
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Website: www.andreajseverson.com
About the Author
Andrea J. Severson lives in Scottsdale, Arizona. She has a PhD in English with a focus in fashion rhetoric and is a writing instructor at Arizona State University. Living abroad while her father served in the U.S. Army, she grew up loving European countries and experiencing other cultures. A family vacation to the United Kingdom when she was 9 made a strong impression and she dreamed of returning as an adult. A fateful first trip in late 2010 created a love affair with the country, and London in particular. She has visited and lived in London and Oxford numerous times. Now she loves to write about her favorite locations and dreams of adventures to come.
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