There were many false starts with this novel, where I put it down, and let it rest. But being able to persist and finally join the world of indie authors with a finished product has been a labor of love. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the many cheerleaders by my side.

This book was born out of a lost vision of my own—to be a novelist. It is with self-compassion that I must first acknowledge my twenty-two-year-old self for finishing a completely different manuscript. That book was never published—it was lost many computers and moves ago. But if I could speak to my younger self today, I’d thank her for finishing it. Finishing any large project is never a simple feat, but my memories of writing then, allowed me to know I could do it again. Reclaiming her dream, my dream, has been one of the proudest moments of my life.

The catalyst for recapturing this vision was my husband, Adriel, who volleyed the dream back to me after I had forgotten it. We had a “writing date” a couple of months into our relationship. We both spent an hour writing side by side, with dueling laptops. He read what I wrote then, a version of what turned out to be chapter one of Chasing the Sunset. He never let go of his belief in my talent as a writer. When I was feeling lost six years after that date and I told him I wanted to find my purpose, he said, “You should write.” He kept repeating this and encouraging me through all the self-doubt until I found the courage to persist.

This persistence was aided greatly by the support of fellow writers. My cousin Robin, who referred me to her MFA classmate Sara Graybeal, who I hired as my first book coach. Sara asked the right questions in our sessions to help me verbally process where this story was going.

She led me to my critique group, which at the time of this publication has been meeting twice a month for close to two years. Their feedback and reactions to early chapters helped to give this story legs. Khallori, Whitney, Ricky, Veronica, Lori and especially Jen; I’m in your debt.

When I asked for a morning accountability buddy from that group, Jen O’Bryan began showing up every single morning at 8 a.m. She is my writing companion, accountability buddy, and self-doubt slayer. We share in the dream of being novelists together. I could not have made it this far without her.

Grace, Teri, and Jim became my local in-person critique group recently. Their feedback just in the last several months has brought a fresh perspective to the book. I’m grateful for their continued feedback as I take on the second book in this series. (!!!)

I consider myself incredibly lucky to have stumbled upon my editor, Sam Stringert. From our first meeting, I knew she was going to be the perfect person to guide me. With every round of edits, she made this novel stronger.

Finally, I’d like to acknowledge and thank the family and friends who served as beta readers for being my encouraging and honest supporters. Every phone call lit me up and filled my soul—whether it was Emily D. taking the time to give me detailed notes, Emily S. talking to me for an hour about how much the story meant to her after a hard week, or the other calls of support from family members.

As I continue to find my way in endeavoring to create a bit of lasting change, I am immensely grateful to all who were with me for the journey.