Gwendy’s Final Task

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

IT’S USUALLY PLURAL, AS in acknowledgements, but the authors decided not to do the whole Academy Awards shtick, since there’s no music to play us offstage. Lots of people helped, including our families, who give us the time and space to do this crazy job, and all those helpers know who they are. But Robin Furth, who aided Steve on the last three volumes of the Dark Tower books, deserves special mention. All that stuff about prepping for takeoff, the takeoff itself, the docking with our (decidedly fictional) space station? That’s all Robin. She sent us fact sheets, she sent us videos, and when we got things wrong, she corrected us (gently, lovingly). If it feels real, that’s because most of it really is. Gwendy’s Final Task—and her final adventure—isn’t dedicated to Robin, but it could have been; her help was enormous.

Oh, and before we let you close the book (assuming you haven’t already), we want to thank you, Constant Reader. We’re so happy you invested your time, money, and imagination in our little story.

—Stephen King & Richard Chizmar