Writing may be a solitary process, but publication is a team effort. My deepest thanks go first to Caroline Leavitt, my extraordinary mentor, who was the first person to glimpse the world I created in these pages. Her unflagging belief in Madeleine and Aidan's story means more than I can say.
I owe a debt of gratitude to my indefatigable agent, without whom the book might never have found an audience. Felicia, you are the best advocate a fledgling writer could ask for. Thank you for finding my imaginary friends a home. And to Linda, my editorâyour keen insights and thoughtful comments made all the difference. I am so lucky that you took a chance on me.
On the home front, thanks are due to Anne Firmender, who read every draft of this bookâand there were many. Thank you to Jessica Whaley, who did me the great service of listening as I talked my way through sticky sections of the plot. Jess, if you were secretly crafting your grocery list as I rambled on, you never let it show.
Big hugs to my parents, for entertaining Lucas while I gallivanted across the country, and to Neil, for putting up with me when I had one foot in his world and the other one in Maddie's.
Walter Scott Kiesling was the best climbing consultant an acrophobic girl could ask for. Thanks for reading, and your invaluable suggestings. Any mistakes that remain are my own.
I owe a shoutout of epic proportions to Chamisa Wheeler for introducing me to Colorado, to Russ and Linda Criswell for welcoming me into their home, and to an anonymous group of Outward Bound instructors in Rifle Canyon who were kind enough to share their expertise with a stranger. Thank you to Tracy Wilkes for the title, to the crew at Port City Java for caffeinating me with such tender care, and to my book club ladies for cheering me on. You know who you are.
About the Author
E
MILY
C
OLIN
lives in North Carolina with her partner, their son, two reprehensible canines, and a beta fish. In her other life, she serves as associate director at the DREAMS Center for Arts Education in Wilmington, a nonprofit organization that provides multidisciplinary arts programming for youth in need.
The Memory Thief
is her first novel.