Authors: J.A. Souders

Renegade (36 page)

BOOK: Renegade

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First I’d like to thank my wonderful agent, Natalie Fischer Lakosil, whose unwavering faith, perseverance, support, and patience was the lighthouse in the rainstorm I needed. Thank you for cutting back the vines of publishing, talking me off ledges, and generally just going above and beyond the call of duty time and time again. And, of course, thank you to Laura Bradford for her insightful advice and for making
Renegade
even better.

A
huge
thank-you to my awesome-sauce editor, Mel Frain, for being my navigator, despite her hatred of bananas. Thank you for guiding me with your fantastic ideas and fabulous eye for uncovering
Renegade
’s true potential. This story wouldn’t have been as great without you—high five. Thank you to the entire Tor Teen team. And of course, thank you to
Renegade
’s art director, Seth Lerner, and the fantastic cover artist, Eithne O’Hanlon, for giving me such a beautiful cover. It exceeded my expectations and I couldn’t be happier.

To Liz Czukas, my very first crit partner and “harshest” critic, thank you for being my sounding board, shoulder to cry on, brainstorming partner, and, above all else, my best friend. Without you, I’d have gone bald long ago and I’d probably be talking to myself while rocking in the corner. Thank you for making my manuscript bleed more times than I can count, for lending me your ear and brain for hours on end, and for sending me mountains of horribly fantastic ideas and one-liners, such as “Oh my jellyfish.” One day, I hope to do the same for you.

To Larissa Hardesty, thank you for being my friend and listening to all my griping and whining, for being my cheerleader when I needed one, and for tearing up my manuscript when it needed it. Your feedback and advice was priceless and I’ll never forget it!

To Leah Crichton, thank you for being my first fan. Your never-ending support helped keep me going more times than I can count.

Of course, none of this would be possible without the never-ending support of my family.

My husband and the love of my life, Ben, who I’ve been in love with since he was the only boy in my health class my freshman year and who took me to see a chick flick with three other girls, just so he could take me on my first date. Thank you for listening to my incessant rambles about my story and the problems I’m having with it, for helping me shore up plot holes, and for helping me research the science behind my world. Thanks also for reminding me it’s not the destination that matters, but the journey, and that love always conquers all. I love you now and always.

To my children, Charles and Aurora. Both of you know how much I love you and how much better my life is now that you’re in it. No matter how frustrated I get with you and you with me, I hope you’ll always remember and know how strong my love is for you. I hope you know that anything worth doing is hard, but to “never give up and never surrender.” And, of course, a huge thank-you, Charles, for helping me come up with the title. I doubt anyone could have come up with a better one.

To my mom, for showing me the gift of reading by giving me her well-worn copies of
Nancy Drew
and everything Louisa May Alcott. And my dad, for giving me the ability to fight for what I want.

Thank you, also, to my other family, my sisters at Oasis for YA. All you beautiful ladies have kept me going with your amazing talent and love for YA. And to the wonderful writers of the debut group, The Apocalypsies, for helping me navigate these rough and treacherous waters.

Thank you to my brilliant photographer, Jessica Grimm, with whom I share a name and a talent for the arts.

Thank you to Taylor Swift, Marianas Trench, Avril Lavigne, and Evanescence for creating the brilliant music that poured through my speakers as I wrote this book.

Thank you to God for giving me the talent and perseverance to see this project through to its end.

More thank-yous to my wonderful group of blog readers and Twitter followers and other online friends. You all are fantastic. Please don’t stop what you’re doing. Keep it coming. And last but not least, thank you to
you,
wonderful reader. I hope you enjoy my book. I’m grateful you chose this book from all the other wonderful ones swarming the shelves.

About the Author

J. A. Souders lives in Florida with her husband and their two children and is an active member of the Romance Writers of America, Central Florida Romance Writers, Young Adult Romance Writers of America, and Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
Renegade
is her first novel.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.