to hunter, my creative soul mate, thank you for being such an avid supporter of my work, both musical and poetic. creating and singing with you has been some of the most fun i’ve ever had. i’m so glad we found each other, and i cannot wait to see what our unhinged brains create next.

to the poetry community, thank you for your support as i’ve grown up these last nine years. it has been a privilege and joy to come into adulthood as part of such a wonderful, warm community. i don’t think i’ll ever be able to repay you all enough for what you have given me.

to trista mateer, i have moments daily where i remember being in awe that you’d even like a post of mine. now, you are a trusted mentor and friend. i owe you so much. thank you.

to zane frederick, kaliane faye, and shelby leigh, thank you for all of your feedback on book ideas, listening to me rant about algorithms, and genuinely being some of the loveliest people i’ve ever met. i’m so excited to see where your talents will take you.

to jessica and molly, thank you for all the work you’ve done proofreading, editing, and improving this collection. you truly took this book to the next level. i’m so glad to have editors who are so considerate and diligent with their work.

to my teachers, past and present, i learned more from you than just the subject you taught in the classroom. i am who i am because of the wisdom and kindness you gave me. thank you.

and lastly, to my readers: thank you so much. this life i get to lead, sharing my poetry with all of you—it is surreal to me. i never thought it would be possible. but every day, i wake up and share poetry that, for whatever reason, touches your hearts, or helps to heal your wounds. thank you, thank you, thank you. i love you.

about the author

Catarine Hancock is a twenty-three-year-old poet and opera singer from Lexington, Kentucky. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Kentucky, and is currently earning her Master of Music in Voice at Indiana University. Aside from music, poetry is her other great love. Having been a bookworm and writer all her life, she found her passion for poetry at the age of thirteen, and shortly afterward, she began sharing her writing online. Over the next nine years, her platform grew to an audience of over 300,000. She is the author of three other poetry collections, shades of lovers and sometimes i fall asleep thinking about you, and sprout. When she is not singing or writing, Catarine can be found curled up with a good fantasy novel, wandering the aisles of the local bookstore, or adding a weird décor item she found at Goodwill to her already too-cluttered apartment.

You can find Catarine here:

TikTok: @catarinehancock

Instagram: @catarinehancock

Twitter: @writingbych