To Rena Rossner, thank you for lifting me out of the query trenches and taking a chance on this offbeat story. Stacey Barney, thank you for challenging me to take my world to new heights. Michael Bourret, thank you for your friendship, your advocacy, and for believing in what I have to say. Thank you to Corey Brickley for creating such an unforgettable cover illustration, and to the entire team at Penguin for your enthusiasm about my work.

Thank you to Rachel Gurevich and Sarah Summerbell for being my first beta readers. To my high school besties, Alessandro Miccio and Aliki Fornier, thank you for giving me a place to be my truest self when I needed it most. Shout-out to Diego, Mia, Ludi, Kyle, Jessi, and Botai for making my college years a lot less hellish than they would’ve been without you.

To my uncles Bruce and Brent, thank you for loving my first self-published book and inspiring me to keep writing. Thank you to Mom and Grande for reading my early books when I was afraid to show them to anyone else and for giving me the tools I would need to make my dream come true. David, thank you for your enthusiasm for this concept, for keeping me down to earth, and for being a great brother.

Shout-out to my queer Black writer friends Pheolyn Allen, Jamar Perry, Lachelle, and Anthony Isom Jr. for inspiring me with your words, holding me down through the years, and understanding where I’m coming from.

To the creative writing and poetry professors at Hofstra, I appreciated the opportunity to learn from you. Huge thank-you to my first writing teacher, Rosemary McClellan, for telling me I’d be a great writer and for championing me through the publication of my debut.

Thank you to my fellow authors who’ve gone out of your way to extend any kindness, opportunity, or mentorship: Rita Williams-Garcia, Adam Silvera, Becky Albertalli, Kacen Callender, Amy Reed, Sarah Nicholas, Anica Mrose Rissi, Tom Ryan, Claribel Ortega, Celeste Pewter, Elsie Chapman, Dana Mele, and Rivers Solomon.

And to queer and trans Black people, thank you for your resilience, your magic, and the flavor you bring to the artistic landscape. I’m here because you are.

About the Author

PHOTO BY ROCQUEZ FLUELLEN

RYAN DOUGLASS is a queer horror author and freelance writer from Atlanta, Georgia. His work on media representation has appeared in HuffPost, Atlanta Black Star, LGBTQ Nation, and the National Council of Teachers of English, among others. He received his BA in theater studies from Hofstra University and is currently a nomad floating across the United States. The Taking of Jake Livingston is his first novel.

You can visit Ryan at
ryandouglasswriter.com

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