Hello Readers:

On the eve of FLUTTER's release, I'm feeling all kinds of FEELINGS, and I just wanted to write a post in which I talk about being thankful. Writing is such a solitary thing to do. I sit for hours at a time, earplugs cranked up, can of Coke in my hand, intermittently staring out into space and typing away on the keyboard. And I live in my own little world, completely absorbed in my story, the characters, their decisions, their motivations, their LIVES.

But...

There's always a but, right? Good writing. Great writing. Publishable writing is NOT solitary. Because it takes a team of people to make a good story great. To make a novel worthy of that Random House colophon. For me, that team consists of several people, who I'd like to thank now.

First, my agent, Caryn Wiseman. She picked FLUTTER out of the slush pile. I know that the query process is not perfect. I know that it is frustrating and slow, but guess what? It also works. Caryn picked FLUTTER out of the slush and she requested the full manuscript, and from there, she became my most TRUSTED partner in writing. And I am SO glad to have an agent like Caryn, someone who is decisive, on top of everything, and is in the trenches with me, not just in a business manner, but also editorially. She helped me rewrite FLUTTER into what it is today.

Next, Suzy Capozzi at Random House is my editor, and every day I feel so lucky for her championing of FLUTTER. Through experienced editorial changes, cover design, and marketing, FLUTTER has become a real book. A tightly edited, perfectly suspenseful, romantic mystery. Suzy and her team took FLUTTER and molded it into the perfect shape that it wanted to become. And she sent it out into the world with the whole package -- a kick-ass cover and a perfectly pitched marketing campaign. It floors me to have such a great team on my side.

Last but not least, I want to thank my first readers, Eva and my mom. They read what I churn out, before it's any good, and they turn me in the right direction. They tell me honestly what works and what doesn't. They listen to me as I flesh out my characters or discuss a certain plot point. They put up with the midnight phone calls about ... what if????

FLUTTER is a group effort. I may have written the story, but the book is a group effort. And I just want to say thank you for this beautiful book. Thank you, Caryn! Thank you, Suzy and Random House! I feel so incredibly lucky to be right here, doing this right now.

And thank you to you, Dear Readers, for your reviews, for your tweets, for your kind words. Most of all, for reading. : )

And I will leave you with a funny cat picture:

I had to stretch out my back after writing too long, and Spinky decided it was his perfect spot.