My mom went back to college and completed her English degree when I was a little kid, and the books and assignments she brought home filled me with a sense of allure and wonder. To her, a good book was the best thing in the world, and a goal of mine ever since has been to write something she would enjoy. She would've been 65 today, and I wish she would've lived to see this: the deluxe galley of my first novel. It wouldn't exist without her.