I never imagined writing a book would involve so many people. The words on this page will not do them justice. The time and effort – in many forms – has allowed me to delve into a realm I hadn’t contemplated until two years ago. Without these individuals, this book would not be and my life would be lessened; not because I didn’t write the book, but because my interaction with them would not have been taken to such a personal level.
I have to start with my mom. It sounds so cliche, but not only has she been the kind of mom who inspired me with no limits, she gave me the gift of time for my writing career. I love my children, but writing a book with any of them in a one-mile radius would be like trying to light a candle in a hurricane. Mom watches the kids for much of my writing time. This enables me to spend a summer day writing with Lisa is off at work, and allows us to still have the evening to get our kids to the ball fields.
On top of the woman-power she exhibits watching “el banditos quatros,” she is also the wizard of this website. In her sort-of retirement, she dabbles in technology. Not many people have their mom run their website, but she has been magnificent. And without her, none of this would be possible.
My dad has little to do with my writing, but he has everything to do with who I am. I learned hard work and consistency from him. Almost every Friday while I was in college he would referee a football game and get home near midnight. He would then get up at 5 a.m. and drive seven and a half hours to my college football game so he could watch me get on the field for eight or nine snaps. That will forever stand out to me.
D, Molly, and Pam had the opportunity (or ill-fortune) to see this from almost start to finish. After I got a few chapters into Target Prep, I asked them to read the book chapter by chapter. They gave me great feedback, telling me when things didn’t make sense to them and when characters seemed to be a bit out of whack. But most importantly, they gave me encouragement to go on, to let Taylor slow Yousef and his men and to have Dax save Lexi. Without these three people, this story would be nowhere near as good as it is.
I have the utmost respect for the men and women in our United States military. The lives we live with relative ease would look nothing like they do today if it were not for the soldiers who fought and died over the years, and for those who stand guard for us now. The last thing I wanted to do when writing this book was to insult our military personnel with a lack of realism. This is why Michael has been instrumental in guiding me along the path of combat, making sure I have the correct weapons and vehicles for my characters to chase down the bad guys, and the right battlefield medical techniques when one of them takes a round in the thigh. There were countless hours of research that went into the writing of Target Prep, and pinging ideas off Michael’s brain accounted for a large chunk. Thank you.
A big thank you goes to Clare Vanderpool, winner of the Newberry Award for Moon Over Manifest. It was Clare who encouraged me to write my first chapter. She is there for any questions I have, whether they be about writing or the professional side of publishing. This bird would have never spread his wings without her nudge.
No matter how many times you proofread something yourself, you will never get it quite right. You too often see what you want to see and your mind skips right over the missing word or strange punctuation. Paul gave me a professional eye to critique my prose and his red marks were a needed and welcome improvement on my story. Thanks for taking those summer days to help me.
Thanks to Tobie of Tobie Andrews Photography for the great pictures on the website. She didn’t have much material to work with, but she made them look as good as humanly possible.
Sarah Holt is the graphic designer for Target Prep. I would invite you to judge this book by its cover, because she did a fantastic job designing it. It makes me want to pick it up immediately and I believe many others will feel the same.
So many people have helped me with this book. But there is one person who helps me each moment of each day. The most important person in the world is my wife, Lisa. She has made me a complete person and without her I would be empty. Without her, this book means nothing. She is my best friend, a wonderful wife, and an awesome mom. Sideways eight.
God gave me the talents to write this book, but He didn’t stop there. Everything I have is from our Lord. It is so much more than what I need.
Thank you to all of you who have helped me so much. I will never be able to repay you. I hope that you know there is a piece of each of you in this book and in the books to come.