Under the Lights

Much love and gratitude to all my wonderful author friends who are there for the millions of non-writing parts of the process. Lindsay Smith, my amazing accountabilibuddy — I don’t know what I’d do without you (drink less?) and I never want to find out. Thank you for always pushing me to my limits and beyond. Sara Taylor Woods, Katie Locke, Emily Henry, Paula Garner, Ami Allen-Vath, and Candice Montgomery — handsy hugs to you all for ensuring I always had both the proper subtext-y inspiration and people to crack me up or hold my hand when I needed it most. Love to my wonderful pub-sisters, especially Kelsey Macke, Megan Whitmer, and Michelle Smith, for kindness, companionship, and inspiration. Thank you, Leah Raeder, for much-needed pep talks and instilling in me the determination to nail the whole shebang, and the YA Misfits, OneFour KidLit, and the Binders (especially my amazing, beloved co-mods) for guidance and commiseration. Finally, heaps of appreciation to the incredible bloggers who supported both this book and Behind the Scenes.

To my family — whether Adler, Fisch, or Croog — thank you for unflagging love and support. Very special thanks to Eyal, for helping me out with some tough LA research questions, and to Julia, for being my biggest fan even though your mom won’t let you read my books until you’re sixteen.

Yoni — you are above and beyond the love interests of stories, even the ones whose abs have their own fan clubs. You are more than I knew a partner could be. Thank you for being by my side through everything, always.

This book is for those who love fearlessly, and those still trying to. Thank you for being exactly who you are.