Geekomancy (42 page)

I’ve had worse. I’ve stared down demons, werewolves, and rorikon strega, and outtalked the nerdiest, most obstinate, opinionated geeks Pearson has to offer. Hell, I’ve saved lives. I’ve saved lives
from
hell.

“I just hope you can keep up, Grognard. You don’t know the half of what I can do.”

Grognard nodded appreciatively and poured another shot for each of them.

He lifted his glass again. “To finding out what we can do.”

Acknowledgments

It takes a village to raise a child. It takes several more to help a young writer publish their first novel. Thank you one and all.

To all of my teachers, who helped me discover and interrogate the world until it yielded its awesomeness.

To the staff and denizens of The Game Preserve, for showing me how great the geek community could be. Special thanks to Bryan Roberts, Andrew Reyes, James McWilliams, and to my fellow flunkies.

To my first critique group, Scat Hardcore, for taking in a newb and showing him the ropes. Special thanks to Marie Brennan, Von Carr, Darja Malcolm-Clarke, and Alyc Helms.

To the classmates, instructors, and staff of the 2007 Clarion West Writers Workshop. You all helped me learn how to walk the path. Good Unicorn says you’re the best critiquers ever. Bad Unicorn says you need to write more!

To the baristas of the Barnes & Noble café in Bloomington, IN, for teaching me the Dao of the all-black outfit and the perfect shot of espresso. Special thanks to Christia Osborne, my café Yoda.

To the Codex Writers Group, my geographically-distributed writing lifeline. Special thanks to Elle Van Hensbergen, Beth Cato, Rebecca Roland, Anaea Lay, Kenneth Kao, Gary Kloster, Vylar Kaftan, Steven R. Stewart, Rachel Marks, Jeff Lyman, and Randy Henderson, for the great comments on my first draft.

To Lothair Biederman, for being my last-minute military/medical research consultant.

To the awesome community of Book Country, who provided the venue that made this all possible. Colleen Lindsay, Danielle Poiesz, and Molly Barton: You’ve helped dreams come true.

To my agent, Sara Megibow, for being my champion and my advocate. May this be the first of many awesome projects together.

To my editor, Adam Wilson, and his team at Pocket Books. Adam, thank you for venturing into Book Country and for believing in Ree, her story, and in me. You helped me power-level the novel so it could be ready to see the world.

Saving the best for last: to Meg White, for her unending support. Thank you with all my heart.

I know I’ve forgotten some, and I apologize. But that’s what sequels are for: things left undone, stories left untold.

About the Author

Michael R. Underwood is a speculative fiction writer and independent publishers’ representative. He holds a B.A. in creative mythology and East Asian studies from Indiana University and an M.A. in folklore studies from the University of Oregon. He has worked as a fiction reader for
Fantasy Magazine,
as well as writing for
PopMatters.com
as a DVD reviewer and essayist.
Geekomancy
is his first novel. Follow him at
www.MichaelRUnderwood.com
or on Twitter at
@MikeRUnderwood
.

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