“I mean . . . maybe?” Laiba shrugs and laughs. “I’m not exactly a joiner, or a team player, or an athlete . . .” In spite of her words, I see the gleam in her eye, the spark of dork peeping through her hipster art exterior. “I mean, I used to be super into the movies. I wanted to cast spells and fly around; I did some”—her voice drops to an even lower mumble—“fan art. I’ll have to check it out at least, for sure.”
I know my huge smile matches Melissa’s. One of us, one of us.
“Quidditch,” Laiba says quietly, “how cool.”
I nod because I won’t be able to find the right words to explain the magic of the sport and the community, but I’m so ready to show it to her.
“But wait.” My roommate glances between me and Melissa, a crease forming across her forehead. “Just one question.”
Melissa smirks. Like me, she’s heard the question a million times by now.
“If it’s quidditch . . .”
I’m laughing because I know what comes next.
“How do you fly?”
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
As often as quidditch players are asked, “How do you fly?” writers are asked, “How do you publish a book?” The short answer to both questions is: I don’t. I am extremely grateful to be part of a team with so much talent and depth, working tirelessly so that this story (and so many others) get to fly.
MVP award goes to my agent, Patricia Nelson, for always backing me up and believing in the heart of the book. Also thanks to Victoria Marini for the assist on this one.
Major high fives to my editor, Kelsey Murphy, brilliant captain of the Philomel team. Thanks to Cheryl Eissing, Kristin Boyle, and everyone else whose skills brought out the best in this story, and to Ali Mac for the beautiful cover illustrations.
Nearly six years (and several lifetimes of world news ago), a version of this story was my thesis project at The New School, so I have to thank my cohort, professors, and mentor Sarah Ketchersid for reading those earlier, much worse drafts and helping me find my way. Thanks to Dhonielle and Sona for giving me a literary family and career while I took my time making better drafts. And thanks to all my beta readers throughout the years.
There isn’t enough space in the book for a(nother) love letter to the quidditch community, but I owe so much to so many quidkids around the world. Rice Quidditch crew, thanks for the training, the cheers, and the passion. Badassilisks, thanks for taking in a displaced existential-crisis-on-a-broom and giving me a home. Quidditch México, gracias por aceptarme como especialista de hidratación e incluirme en sus aventuras internacionales. Houston Cosmos, I love y’all to infinity and beyond.
To the real-life quidditch feminists, and everyone dedicated to having the hard conversations about the sport and the fandom, thank you so much for caring enough to hold us to a higher standard. Unending love for every queer, trans, and questioning athlete and every athlete of color trying to navigate systems of oppression while mounted on a broom.
Sometimes I take a break from beating faces and I sit down and write words, and I couldn’t do that without the support of my writing community. Thanks once again to Laura Silverman, Amanda Joy, Kiki Chatzopoulou, and Meghan Drummond. (I did it, y’all, I made the quidditch book a thing!) Thanks to my Houston author friends for helping me find the actual time and space to write (looking at you Cory), to Las Musas for all the apoyo and chisme, to all my conference buddies and social media friends. Thanks especially to readers, librarians, booksellers, bloggers, and teachers who cheered me on through the Love Sugar Magic series and continue to support my foray into YA.
Claire, Merric, Devon, thanks for the musical sing-alongs and friendship bonding moments. Ariel, I’m glad you’re my person and I hope we keep doing quidditch things until we’re eighty.
Apologies (and thanks always) to my parents, Frank and Rita, for writing about teen angst instead of happy families this time. Poop to Michael and Gabriel. Thanks to all my family members who are still showing up for and putting up with me, even when I name antagonists after them, which they totally don’t deserve.
Finally, and most importantly, thanks to everyone who sees part of themself in the book. I hope you enjoy.
ABOUT QUIDDITCH
Quidditch is a full-contact, mixed-gender sport played by over 9,000 people in nearly 40 countries! The sport was founded in 2005 at Middlebury College in Vermont by Xander Manshel and Alex Benepe. Looking for a variation on their normal Sunday activities, they gathered friends and laid the foundation for a game that has grown in leaps and bounds to become a widely respected, physically intense sport that gives athletes of all gender identities and backgrounds opportunities to compete together.
Quidditch has a unique mix of elements from rugby, dodgeball, and tag. A quidditch team is made up of seven athletes who play with brooms between their legs at all times. While the game can appear chaotic to the casual observer, once familiar with the basic rules, quidditch is an exciting sport to watch and even more exciting to play. To learn more about the rules referenced in this book, go to US Quidditch’s website at https://www.usquidditch.org/about/rules/.
Quidditch has always been a mixed-gender sport. Every edition of the rulebook states that “the gender that a player identifies as is considered to be that player’s gender.”
GET INVOLVED
There are lots of ways to get involved with quidditch! To find a team in your area, start by going to the International Quidditch Association’s website at https://www.iqasport.com/teams. They have a directory of all the leagues around the world, and the leagues have listings of teams in their respective countries on their websites. If you’re looking to start a team in your area, US Quidditch has resources on their website at https://www.usquidditch.org/get-involved/start-a-team. If you’re interested in attending events, volunteering, or just learning more about the sport, check out https://www.usquidditch.org/ for more information.
The International Quidditch Association, US Quidditch, and its activities are not licensed by, sponsored by, or associated with Warner Bros., J.K. Rowling, or their affiliates. “Quidditch,” “Harry Potter,” and all related names, characters, and indicia are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. Harry Potter publishing rights © J.K. Rowling.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anna Meriano grew up in Houston, Texas, with an older brother and a younger brother but (tragically) no sisters. She graduated from Rice University with a degree in English and earned her MFA in creative writing with an emphasis in writing for children from the New School in New York. She has taught creative writing and high school English and works as a writing tutor. Anna likes reading, knitting, playing full-contact quidditch, and translating English song lyrics into Spanish and vice versa. She's also the author of the Love Sugar Magic series.