Chapters (103)

When I was a teenager, I moved three thousand miles away from everything I knew to live in the redwood forest of Northern California. To everyone I knew during that wondrous time — thank you.

This book is for everyone who is finding out who they are, where they belong, and who they belong with. This book is for the different ones, especially those who live where it’s very hard to be different. I see you. I think you’re magic.

My heart is indebted to all the people who make LGBTQIAP folks safer and happier and help us find one another. In particular, I’d like to shout all the way back to Michigan, to Tirzah Price, who literally made me cry when she told me about a new GSA and an upcoming Pride parade.

Lily Anderson, you befriended these witches when they needed you most. Allyson Capetta, you read and gave notes when you probably should have been planning your wedding. Writers of the first Rainbow Workshop (aka Queer Pete), you are the squad I’ve always hoped for. Let’s all be Grays together.

Sara Crowe and the Pippin team, I’m so proud to work with you.

Thanks to the Vermont College of Fine Arts community, especially Nova Ren Suma, who inspired me to embrace the ghosts when they showed up in my book, and Will Alexander, who gave me the organizing principles for a complicated story — and this quote from Charlie Jane Anders: “Every spell is a manifesto.”

Big love to the Candlewick team for embracing this book with all their thoughtfulness and care. Matt Roeser, you designed the cover of my dreams, and Sherry Fatla, your interior designs are perfectly lovely. Betsy Uhrig and Hannah Mahoney, you copyedited and somehow wrestled a time line out of my manuscript, which makes you champions. Jamie Tan, working with you is a total delight. Allison Hill, and Jamie, thanks for your help with June. Christine Engels, thank you for your help with the beginning. Hilary Van Dusen, thank you for your help with everything!

Miriam Newman, you believed in this story before the first word was written. This book is deeper and weirder and even less linear because of your brilliance. I feel like we’ve been summoning this one together.

Cori McCarthy, I’ll always remember that long night drive to the Lost Coast. We found the town that became Tempest, and the entire story spilled out from there. We found each other, and everything changed. You are what I was searching for.

Copyright

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or, if real, are used fictitiously.