Loner
Page 20
Big big love and thanks to …
Stacey, for the concert and the friendship that made me want to write about concerts and friendship. Kirsti, for always, always, always wanting to talk about books, and also for suffering through the (more horrifying than I intended it to be) horror novel before I let you read this one. Meg, for the many crafty things we have made at your kitchen table, and all the lovely cups of tea and even lovelier chats we have had along the way. Sarah T, for the encouragement from the next bathroom stall along, exactly when I needed help keeping faith. Jess, Lisa, Travis and Cam, for the $5 pasta cups and numerous (oft-aborted) attempts to start a writing group. Y’all are crazy rad.
Thank you to all my lecturers and peers at RMIT, for the books you recommended and the support you gave and the anthologies we (eventually) named and the reading nights at which some of us drank too much wine and ate too little cheese and were never able to show our face at Captain Melville’s again. Particular thanks to Briohny Doyle for her feedback and portentous advice.
Thank you (and apologies) to Tony and Louise for not only giving me my first proper job, but also for unwittingly facilitating the writing of quite a decent portion of this novel behind the counter at Pickwicks.
To be honest, this dedication page should just be one long ode to my parents, not for any specific reason, but for the infinity of their love and support. It occurred to me sometime in the midst of writing this novel that while I used to think the best part of the party was getting to leave and blast the Fratellis in the car, I’ve come to realise the best part of the party is when I finally get home and kick off my shoes and interrupt your viewing of Escape to the Country to give you the run down of exactly which masters degrees and startlingly adult jobs all those people I used to go to school with have now.
To my siblings, for all the absurdities and family folklore we never let each other forget. To my wonderful aunts, uncles and Granma Mac, here’s to DIY rolls and big (ten people!!) Christmases.
This book is dedicated to my grandfather. First reader, first fan. You are loved, missed, remembered. Now and always, salz bitte!
Georgina Young is a writer and designer from Melbourne. She has previously been published in Voiceworks magazine, as well as in Branches, an anthology published by the Bowen Street Press. Loner is her first novel.
PRAISE FOR LONER
‘A clever, unconventional and hilarious coming-of-age story.’ ELIZA HENRY-JONES
‘I loved this razor-sharp, whip-smart, exquisitely funny debut.’ NINA KENWOOD
‘Georgina Young’s fresh voice and careful writing about everyday characters made me feel instantly at home. Read Loner and feel seen, feel hope and be entertained—whatever your age. Young shines.’ ALICE BISHOP
‘A compassionate and clever story for dropouts and screw-ups. Georgina Young has bottled the fears and feelings of every young woman who has had to learn to stop hiding inside herself.’ BRODIE LANCASTER
‘Georgina Young made me squirm and swoon and sigh as I fell head over heels for the exquisite paradoxes of her protagonist. Lona wonders why she can never say exactly the thing she means—lucky for us, we have Young, and she articulates all those things with smarts and humour and grace. This is a book to push into the hands of everyone you know, especially those who ever had trouble knowing themselves.’ KATE MILDENHALL
‘Reading Loner was like reading about a younger me: going to art school, dating the wrong people, living in my first sharehouse, making questionable hair decisions, falling out with friends, going to pretentious hipster cafes, getting lost in Chadstone, waiting for the delayed Pakenham-line train, experiencing my first love and heartbreak, and worrying so much about seeming cool and unbothered. Loner is a convincing snapshot of what it is like to be a young artist and not know what the hell you want to do with the rest of your life.’ FRANCES CANNON
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Copyright © Georgina Young, 2020
The moral right of Georgina Young to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted.
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright above, no part of this publication shall be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the publisher of this book.
Published by The Text Publishing Company, 2020
Book design by Imogen Stubbs
Cover image by Rachel Szopa
Typeset by J&M Typesetting
ISBN: 9781922330130 (paperback)
ISBN: 9781925923575 (ebook)
A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of Australia