One Year Author Anniversary

Today I've been doing some reflection. It's my one year author anniversary. At least, it was around this time last year (it's hard to tell an exact date at the end of June 2020) that I embarked on this incredible journey. So why not just claim today? 

'Wait,' you may say, 'Have you literally only been writing a year?'

Allow me to clarify. 

I've been writing my entire life; since grade school with crayons and construction paper and squiggly misspelled words. I've even released a couple flop books; ones I wrote in college and released unedited and unpolished. 
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In all that time, though, never once did I actually consider what I was doing to be more than dabbling in a hobby. Even when I self-published my first two YA books (the ones that flopped), I never expected anything to really come of it. I was young; I didn't know what I was doing, and I believed that the only way to make a living or be a 'real' author was to be traditionally published. 

And yet here I am, celebrating my one year author anniversary. 

'What's the difference?' you may wonder. Or maybe you're rolling your eyes and ready to walk away from this weird woman's blog. 

The difference, for those who have made it this far, is that one year ago today I claimed being an author as an identity. Writing is a career. Technical writing or writing for entertainment are both important. But an 'author' is a title, a noun to describe oneself. 

A year ago today I moved past the mental roadblock of  'I'm just a writer' (meaning I was just a person who also wrote), and accepted that writing is just a part of who I am. The Katherine D. Graham without writing, without expressing the dreams and stories inside, had something missing in her life. She felt unseen. Her dreams didn't matter.

I must thank my amazing husband, Jikyo, for being the one who saw me floundering a year ago and told me he believed I needed writing in my life. That I was a better person when I wrote regularly. And that my books were special (which meant a lot coming from the man who easily tears fiction novels apart). 

So here I am, one year later, on my one year author anniversary. And here's the key highlights of what has changed:

-I've embraced who I am as an author.
-I am happier and more motivated.
-Two novellas, Splitting Dusk and Down Falls The Queen are now avaialable..
-My debut Epic Fantasy Novel, The Vow That Twisted Fate, comes out in just a couple weeks (July 9th 2021).
-The Vow That Twisted Fate has already received awards.
-I am so humbled and honored to be a part of an amazing author community on Instagram and Facebook that I couldn't be here without.
-My amazing mentor Lindsey Teske has walked me step-by-step through being a writer into becoming an author.
-And I have writing dreams for the future!

If you are reading this and feel stuck, whether it's wanting to pursue writing or something else, please know that your dreams are worth pursuing. Don't wait for Monday. Don't wait for tomorrow. Embrace the challenges to come and the unknown. And become. Become who you are meant to be.

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