ACKNOWLEDGMENTSAnd now a tip of the hat to those who kept me motivated.
At Riverhead Books, Jake Morrissey’s skills as an editor were matched only by his talents as a therapist. He made this abetter book without making its author a crazier person.
Thanks also to Geoff Kloske, who threw his support behind this project early and enthusiastically—and to Riverhead’s extraordinary production team for their skill and patience.
Rafe Sagalyn understood the promise of this book even before I did and championed it with his usual deft touch. I’m grateful to have him as a literary agent and a friend. A huge shout-out as well to the talented Bridget Wagner, who has spread the word about
Drive to publishers around the world.
Vanessa Carr did a terrific job of finding obscure social psychology studies in the crevices of the Internet and on the dusty shelves of university libraries.
Rob Ten Pas once again used his considerable talents to craft pictures to enliven my less considerable words. Sarah Rainone provided spectacular help pushing the project over the finish line during a hot and dreary summer. Remember
all three of those names, folks. They’re stars.
One of the joys of working on this book was having a few long conversations and interviews with Mike Csikszentmihalyi, Ed Deci, and Rich Ryan, who have long been heroes of mine. If there
were any justice in the world, all three would win a Nobel Prize—and if that justice had a slight sense of humor, the prize would be in economics. Any errors or misinterpretations of their work are my fault, not theirs.
It’s about at this point that authors who are parents apologize to their children for missed dinners. Not me. I don’t miss meals. But I did skip nearly everything else for several months and that forced the amazing Pink kids—Sophia, Eliza,
and Saul, to whom
Drive is dedicated—into a dad-less existence fora while. Sorry, guys. Fortunately, as you’ve
no doubt already discovered, I need you a lot more than you need me.
Then there’s the threesome’s mom, Jessica Anne Lerner. As always, Jessica was the first, last, and most honest sounding board for every idea I spit out. And as always, Jessica read every word I wrote—including many thousands of them aloud while I satin a red chair cringing at their sound.
For these small reasons, and many larger ones that are none of your business, this gorgeous, graceful woman leaves me slack-jawed—in awe and in love.
