by Laura Elvery
Warm thanks to my friends and colleagues at QUT for helping with early story drafts, for attending events I read at and for believing in my writing. My progress on this manuscript has been aided by a QUT fellowship and mentorship with the terrific Ryan O’Neill – many thanks – and a shortlisting in the 2016 Queensland Literary Awards. My gratitude also to the marvellous Brooke Davis.
Thank you to members of my writing groups for your time and generosity. My deep gratitude to Andrea, Madeleine, Sikwasa, Bettina, Kathy, Kim, Les, Mhairead and Sarah R for your support.
Special thanks to Kate and Sean, to Emma and Mirandi, to Andy, to Sarah K for years of friendship and encouragement, for your sharp and good eyes.
I’ve been writing these stories over a period of about five years. I’m so lucky to have friends and family who care about what I do and who let me ask them random questions by text message about bits in my stories that I hope they’ll know the answers to – thank you, I love you.
I am indebted to friends and family for babysitting my daughter to give me time to write. Endless gratitude to the Haddons, Simpsons and Elverys.
Love and admiration forever to my sister, Jiselle. To my parents, your faith in me means the world. Thank you, Mum and Dad, for giving me a wonderful childhood. Thanks for letting me read and read and read.
Thank you to Simon and Harriet, the loves of my life.
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Versions of the following stories have appeared online and in print. Thank you to the editors of these publications.
‘Trick of the Light’, published as ‘The Elements’, Kill Your Darlings, 10 November 2014; and Award Winning Australian Writing 2015, Melbourne Books, 2015.
‘Replica’, Award Winning Australian Writing 2013, Melbourne Books, 2013; and Prizing Diversity, Thames and Hudson, 2015.
‘Pudding’, The Big Issue, Issue 491 (Fiction Edition 2015), 14 August 2015.
‘La Otra’, Lip Mag, 28 June 2016.
‘Love, Listen’, Yen Mag, 11 September 2015.
‘What You Really Collect Is Always Yourself’, Review of Australian Fiction, Volume 21, Issue 1, 2017.
‘Acrobat’, Shibboleth and Other Stories, Margaret River Press, 2016.
‘Joiner Bay’, Joiner Bay and Other Stories, Margaret River Press, 2017.
‘Caius Atlas’, Griffith Review 51: Fixing the System, 2016.
First published 2018 by University of Queensland Press
PO Box 6042, St Lucia, Queensland 4067 Australia
www.uqp.com.au
[email protected]
Copyright © Laura Elvery 2018
This book is copyright. Except for private study, research,
criticism or reviews, as permitted under the Copyright Act,
no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior
written permission. Enquiries should be made to the publisher.
Cover design by Josh Durham, Design by Committee
Cover image by Curraheeshutter/Bigstock
Author photo by Trenton Porter
Typeset in 11/15 pt Bembo Std by Post Pre-press Group, Brisbane
Printed in Australia by McPherson’s Printing Group
The quote from Summer of the Seventeenth Doll by Ray Lawler on p. 143 is reproduced courtesy of Currency Press.
This project is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.
The University of Queensland Press is assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.
ISBN
978 0 7022 6006 3 (pbk)
978 0 7022 6124 4 (ePDF)
978 0 7022 6125 1 (ePub)
978 0 7022 6126 8 (Kindle)
University of Queensland Press uses papers that are natural, renewable and recyclable products made from wood grown in sustainable forests. The logging and manufacturing processes conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin.
