The idea for this book developed as part of a conversation between members of a Special Interest Group (SIG) in Substance Use formed under the umbrella of the European Social Work Research Association (ESWRA). At ESWRA's annual international conference in Belgium in 2019, a group of people working in substance-use research within social work and social care contexts met to discuss our work and share learning. What was apparent was that many of us were conducting longitudinal research or research that raised questions about the longer-term impact of the use of substances, particularly in relation to people's experiences and their receipt of services. The discussion unearthed a number of key strands in our shared interest about recovery. These strands reflect the complexity and disagreement in debates about issues including the meaning or definition of recovery, its value as the focus of substance-use policy and practice as well as the extent to which recovery stories and recovery discourse seem capable of capturing and articulating the ways in which structural and systemic issues affect people's experiences in recovery. However, one rich and complex vein of these discussions focussed on the temporality of people's lives in recovery and the question of whether a long-term view of recovery involving different groups of people and experiences might offer a useful way of adding to existing knowledge.

Collating and curating this new research in a book seemed a natural next step.

The editing team comprises three people: Amanda Clayson is a person with lived experience of her own use of substances. She founded and runs a community-voice organisation, VoiceBox Inc., in addition to having a professional background across health and social care. Her work with VoiceBox Inc. seeks to privilege the views and experiences of people who are marginalised or seldom heard. Alastair Roy and Sarah Galvani both come from backgrounds in social work practice and sociology, and both work with people using substances. They have their own lived experiences of losing friends and family as a result of their substance use, and are committed to substance-use policy and practice improvement through applied research.

The editors’ different styles and approaches to writing and thinking created a fruitful editing process.