Gwendy's Magic Feather

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

BEV VINCENT READ THE earliest version of this short novel and, despite his busy schedule, supplied invaluable feedback in record time. Bev also kept the secret and calmed my nerves on a near daily basis. Billy Chizmar read that same early draft and emailed me from his college dorm room in Maine with some simple advice that made the backstory hum a lot smoother. As usual, Robert Mingee caught my last-minute mistakes and cleaned me up for public viewing. Brian Freeman and the good folks at CD did what they always do when I disappear into my writing cave for weeks at a time: they took care of business and let me focus on the words. Ed Schlesinger of Simon & Schuster came on board at the eleventh hour and his insightful notes undoubtedly made Gwendy’s Magic Feather a better book.

I’m indebted to all of these fine people for their wisdom and encouragement. Just remember, I’m old and stubborn, so any mistakes you stumble upon are mine and mine alone.

I also want to thank artists extraordinaire Ben Baldwin and Keith Minnion for returning for another round and giving such beautiful life to Gwendy’s story. I put Gail Cross of Desert Isle Design through the ringer on this project and, as usual, she came through with flying colors.

Much appreciation to my agent Kristin Nelson for all her hard work on this book and for always asking “What’s next?”

Finally, I’m immensely grateful to my friend, Steve King, not only for his generous and thorough edit of Gwendy’s Magic Feather, but also for trusting me to return to Castle Rock and Gwendy Peterson’s life.