Six months as an author: Reflections and ramblings

Six months ago, my debut novel, The Quiet Edge of Memory, was released. Since then, I've been working on my social media presence, (Thank you, BlueSky, for existing. Goodbye, Instagram.) doing a ton of reading, and two weeks ago on my birthday, I started my new project--a collection of prose and poetry. I don't have a working title or release day yet, but it is such a comfort to be back in drafting mode on Word.

I still wake up some mornings and have to remind myself that I'm a published author. I poured my deepest thoughts about international adoption into my MMC, Ian. I used a lot of my academic experiences for my FMC, Martha, but I'm not snarky and outspoken like her. Truth is, I'm very shy, but writing has been my gateway to boldness. While I wrote draft after draft for this book, I had doubts, wondering if I should be so transparent. If I can really put myself in Martha's shoes and write from a voice that's not mine. But I pressed on. I paid for good editing. Even after putting in over ten years of writing, paying editors, rewriting, buying ISBNs, and investing in the cover design, I still had moments when I wanted to hide under Patrick Star's rock and throw it all away.

But I couldn't keep my manuscript hidden in my files. God kept nudging me forward. I went so far and worked so hard. Why back out?

I didn't. My name and book listing is on the Internet. I'm still getting comfortable talking about my novel with others. I still doubt if anyone will pick up the copies I leave in Little Free Libraries. It's still a big deal sometimes to hit that Post button on BlueSky, no matter how random or personal my ramblings are. In fact, it's even a big deal to me that I've maintained this blog for six months.

And the little things are a big deal too! A reader told me she devoured my book in two days and loved it. I checked my KDP account one evening and discovered I sold five copies in one day. Royalties have appeared in my account when I thought no one was seeing me on social media. When you write and put your work out there, people are watching, and if you think they're not listening, they probably are.

If you have a story in you, write it. If you want others to hear it, publish it. And if you want others to know you wrote it, speak up.

Now, I'm going to have a late breakfast, drink some hot chocolate, get sucked into Henry David Thoreau's journals, and write some poetry. And I'll keep being that writer who takes creative risks and does the opposite of what everyone tells me to do. (Remember: do NOT betray your story!) I love every minute of it and wouldn't trade in this crazy life for anything else.