Acknowledgments

I feel slightly guilty that it’s my name emblazoned on the cover of this book. In reality this is the culmination of work and effort by many, many people. I didn’t quite get the scale of this until I embarked on this journey. Every author says this in their acknowledgments and it’s not out of modesty or humility—it’s a fact.

First of all, I would like to thank my developmental editor Susanna Kline, with whom I’ve exchanged many, many hours of conversation on Skype. We’ve talked about everything from the weather (a lot, I think) to flying planes, cowboys (she’s originally from Texas), and occasionally this book. Without Susanna’s infinite capacity for good advice and insight, this would have been a different and lesser book altogether. Thanks also to Cynthia Kane for helping out as my editor on the first chapter.

Big thanks to Michael Stephens who was my first contact at Manning. Thanks, Mike, for your encouragement in our first chats and believing that I could take on this project. The confidence you gave me early on kept me going right till the end.