The time has finally come to write the dedication page to the story you’ve sweat blood and tears over. Should be easy enough, right? Sometimes it seems that these little blurbs are harder to write than the book itself. Let’s toss around some ideas to help you get this important part of your book written.
Who?
Who should you dedicate your book to? Well, there are many answers, and they can be a lot of creative fun. You can dedicate it to your reader. Easy enough. You can recognize anyone who was instrumental in getting the book written. This is a bit different from the Acknowledgements page. Some authors have a great time with this page. One wrote the following: For Toast, the cat, who was no help at all. You can be serious or light-hearted. Think about memories or events that occurred when you were in the trenches, getting to that next scene or chapter. Another I found: Hi, Dad! waves. It speaks volumes in just a few words.
Inspiration
Perhaps the inspiration for your story came from some inanimate object that came to you in an unexpected way. To that ring I found on the sidewalk. The ring may/may not have had a role in the story, but it might be inspirational to your dedication if it played some role. It’s your story, your dedication. If it’s relevant, you can thank a building, an event, or something in nature that helped you write your story. Was it an endless supply of chocolate or coffee? A holiday that was particularly memorable, written while you were trying to get that difficult scene to make sense? A sunny walk that ended in a sudden downpour (and ended up solving a plot problem in your story)? Dedications don’t always have to be about people.
Kindred Spirits
Your book can be dedicated to like-minded people. To those who dream about the moon. What about readers who might have similar hobbies (outside of writing) as you? To those who love to crochet. You may want to tie/align these to your story, or not. It’s up to you. To button collectors everywhere, I’m with you! One author dedicated his book to his student loans!
You can be as lighthearted or serious as you want. You can thank people by name, or acknowledge something wonderful (or not) in the world. Your dedication can touch on something in the book, someone or something that sparks a memory from the time you wrote it, or just be something you feel like writing. You can be philosophical, grateful, or irreverent. Go on. It’s your dedication. Have fun with it.
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