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Back This Is All Your Fault Save as PDF
Chapters (47)
  1. Copyright Notice
  2. Dedication
  3. Epigraph
  4. TUESDAY EVENING
  5. PROLOGUE
  6. WEDNESDAY MORNING
  7. 1
  8. 2
  9. 3
  10. 4
  11. 5
  12. 6
  13. 7
  14. 8
  15. 9
  16. 10
  17. 11
  18. 12
  19. 13
  20. MIDDAY
  21. 14
  22. 15
  23. 16
  24. 17
  25. 18
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. EVENING
  34. 26
  35. 27
  36. 28
  37. 29
  38. 30
  39. 31
  40. SUNDAY
  41. EPILOGUE
  42. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  43. GoFish: Questions for the Author
  44. Excerpt: Travelers Along the Way
  45. CHAPTER ONE
  46. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  47. Newsletter Sign-up

To Diya—thank you for reading a key draft of this book and also thank you for sending me Peter Wimsey fan fiction after you read it. It was an internet rabbit hole I never needed to know existed but I’m so glad that I do now. Also thank you for being the recipient of most of the memes that I find. We will always be 2 Fast and 2 Furious.

Brandy Colbert was the first writer to welcome me back to LA. She and I met on the ’gram and when I showed up to a real live book event she claimed she actually knew me to a whole panel full of other writers. You stuck your neck out there for an unknown quantity at the time and I’ll never forget it. Thank you, Brandy. To Maux, Sarah, Zan, Morgan, and Elissa—thank you for welcoming me as well when I showed up almost three years ago with a book deal and some stars in my eyes. Y’all are beyond generous with your time and your community. Thank you.

And as always, thank you to Steven, who has been cheerleading me at this game for the better part of a decade. Thank you for never letting me take the easy way out. Thank you for always being kind. Thank you for every cup of coffee you make in the morning. Thank you for being the person who inspires me to be the best version of myself. You still deserve as many maple-glazed donuts as the universe is willing to send your way.

And thank you to the city of Chicago, for kicking my ass all those years ago. You left an indelible mark.

GoFish: Questions for the Author

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AMINAH MAE SAFI

What did you want to be when you grew up?

I had no idea. There was a time when I wanted to be a professor. And honestly, I still love teaching. But I wasn’t one of those kids who just knew what they wanted to be and knew what they were going to do to get there. I worked hard so that I had options for my future, but I never had a decided plan. I used to really envy people who knew, but now I’ve just learned to accept that who I am is someone who needed time to find that focus and direction. I had to give myself space to pursue lots of options, which was terrifying when I was younger.

When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?

Is it incredibly nerdy to quote Jane Austen slash Mr. Darcy and say “I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look, or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun”? Because truly I was in the middle of trying to be a professional writer before I realized I wanted to be a writer.