Authors: Douglas Hulick

Among Thieves (58 page)

BOOK: Among Thieves

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When you spend that much time working on something, you end up telling a lot of people about it. Friends, family, coworkers, drunks in bars—sooner or later, everyone hears about the Book. Most of them are supportive; many are interested; some are even enthusiastic; but those aren’t the people who make it into the acknowledgments section. That’s reserved for the big money—the people who have, knowingly or otherwise, impacted the writer or the work in some important way. Even then, you can’t remember everyone, but you can try your best.

Here’s me trying my best:

First thanks go to the members of the best damn writers’ group I could ever want to be a member of, the Wyrdsmiths (in all its various incarnations): Lyda Morehouse, Naomi Kritzer, Bill Henry, Kelly McCullough, Eleanor Arnason, Sean M. Murphy, Harry LeBlanc, Rosalind Nelson, and Ralph A. N. Krantz. Without them, this would have been a very different book, and not for the better. Next, a big tip of the hat to my beta readers, who helped provide a thorough polish and detailing, as well as a few key adjustments under the hood: David Hoffman-Dachelet, Stephanie Zvan, Tracy Berg, and Kelly McCullough.

Special appreciation to my editor, Anne Sowards, and my agent, Jack Byrne, for believing not only in the book, but also in me. Thanks to you both for all your hard work in making this dream come true.

And from farther back down the line, and in no special order, kind words to Larry Lindenbaum, my first honest-to-goodness fan (and a true friend); Roger Siggs, for first showing me how they did it with a rapier back in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; David Biggs, for helping me refine that knowledge; Robert (aka Dorian) and Muriel Jackson, for their belief; Barth Anderson for the last-minute produce consultation; and Dan and Katherine Kretchmar, for not minding that one of my villains shared their son’s name.

A special nod is also due to all the folks who populated the =dwarf and =nomad lists back in the day. You guys were my first audience in a very wild, crazy, and creative time. A bit of Too Tall, Madam, the Pope, Andre, Spyder, Carlos, M the U, and all the rest will always be with me (no matter how hard I try to manage otherwise).

Big thanks to my family, who always made a point of asking how the book was coming, even when I didn’t always want to say: my mom, Verna Hulick, who has always been my greatest cheerleader; my brothers, Nick, Ted, and David; and my sister, Nancy. And to all the family I inherited when I said, “I Do”: Allene Feldman-Morris-Pine; Jerry Feldman and Al Morris (both fondly remembered); Stacy Fox; Ken and Gail Feldman; and Marmon Pine.

A tip of the hat to Evan and Cameron, who deserve mention, even though they excel at preventing me from getting work done. The closed office door means Dad is writing, guys!

Special thanks to my father, Nicholas Hulick. A hero is a hard thing to come by these days—I was lucky enough to grow up having one in my home. Wish you were here for this, Dad.

And, lastly, immeasurable thanks to Jamie, who listened and encouraged and supported and did so much more. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t be writing this, or much of anything else.