This summer has been a whirlwind.
Yesterday, Dark Fragments became my third published book.
I don’t feel the way I thought I would about it.
In the last three months, I’ve faced a lot of realities I was previously shielded from before becoming a published author. One of those truths is that some books find an audience and others don’t. It doesn’t matter if one book is better written, has better twists, or is a more polished version of the voice I’m growing into. Sometimes the book you want people to love isn’t a book that people are willing to pick up. I haven’t yet learned whether that’s something I can control or not.
Another is that, at least so far, the rapid-release strategy I was certain would help me find a readership more quickly has been hit-or-miss. I’m not even entirely certain that it mattered at all, though I may not fully understand the longer-term benefits (or lack thereof) until a year from now. Who really knows.
I didn’t appreciate the roller coaster that this ride would truly be. It has played with my emotions more than I would have anticipated. Some of the highs were early and unexpected, and I wasn’t prepared for the lows, given the reception of the first release. Three months in, there are good days and bad days. I hope for more good than bad over time, but only time will tell.
I’ve realized I really (really, really) hate the feeling that I need to optimize social media, even though I know it’s necessary in today’s world. Having an online presence is a lot of work that takes energy away from what I want to do: write. I currently have 41 Instagram followers, many of whom took months to find me. I appreciate every one of them, but while I feel like I have to post, I also feel incredibly silly sometimes. It’s like giving an emotional speech in a room with two people and a hundred stuffed animals. It’s been draining in a way that’s difficult to explain unless you’re someone who prefers your world to be fairly private.
On that note, I think that the social media aspect of all this is particularly hard for me because I don’t want to be seen. If I could be that typical “hermit in the woods” writer stereotype, I would jump at the chance. Sure, reader validation is terrific and means everything to me, but does that need to come with social media strings attached? I have a readily available email address.
Speaking of email, the only emails I’ve really received are from scammers pretending to be literary agents (Yes, you work for Macmillan and have a Gmail address. Sure, Jan) or inviting me to festivals in London as a guest speaker. That part has been really disheartening, because they’ve gotten very good at using AI to make it sound both professional and like they actually read your book. Now I scan the email, check the address, then trash them. All that to say, if you want to reach out to me and tell me you loved (or hated- I’ll take constructive criticism too) one of my books, please do. I would love that.
So, what’s next from here?
My fourth book, The Second Daughter, is due to my editor mid-next month. My current plan is to possibly release it in November, but I’m not holding myself to any strict deadlines anymore. What I will say is that this is the book that (so far) I’m most proud of. Maybe that’s normal, and every book you write you see improvements based on the lessons you learned in the previous ones. All I know is that in my opinion (as well as my beta readers) it’s my best work so far. I hope to share it with you at the end of 2026.
I’ve also begun what will likely be a four or five book series called Breaking. It’s a slight departure from my standalone books, in that I’d call it “speculative psychological fiction”. It earns this description because, though it is definitely the same flavor as my other books and rooted in first-person emotional and psychological damage, it has elements of fantasy. Not dragons or even really magic, but pieces of the story that could not happen in real life.
I’ve started writing shorter stories, available to anyone who subscribes to my newsletter. The first one, I’ll Be Right Back, is available now. If you’re interested, the subscription form is on my homepage (you can’t miss it).
It’s been a very busy year, and I’m glad the back-to-back rush of rapid publishing is over, one way or another.
I’m a published author now. Three times over.