When one book closes, another opens.

I’ve learned a few things in the brief time that I’ve been a published author.

1.     Imposter Syndrome is real.

2.     You will never be 100% happy with what you’ve published.

3.     Marketing yourself is the worst part of publishing, even if you studied marketing in college.

4.     You will find mistakes in your books a year later.

5.     When one book closes, another opens.

While I’ve been working on Everything but a Novel: A Collection of Fiction, I’ve been busy writing two other books. It wasn’t my intention to do that, but I’ve come to realize that when an idea pops into your head, you really need to write it down because you will not remember it later. And when I say, “later” I don’t mean three months from now, I mean fifteen minutes from now.

Book number four is 75% written and edited, the cover artwork is ready, and all the blurbs are written out. I’m hoping this book can be released by the end of January. I think it’s doable. I have an amazing team of editors and BETA readers that really keep my dreams afloat. I am so grateful for these four individuals.

Book number five will be another chapbook of poetry. This book will be a huge deal for me. I will be submitting it for consideration to several publishers within Wisconsin and Minnesota. This book also feels kind of “big” to me. I never thought I would publish one book, let alone five. Hopefully, this will allow me to get my books into some bookstores and events.

As a reader, “when one book closes, another opens,” also holds true. I’ve read and re-read some amazing books over this year. As a homeschooling family, one of my favorite things is introducing our son to some of our favorite pieces of literature. His favorite book this year was Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes.

What was your favorite book to read in 2025?