Proud and Thankful; December 31 2025

It’s been a busy holiday, in spite of existing in the odd liminal space that is ‘the week between Christmas and the New Year’. I’ve been dogsitting, attempting to get a short story written, and looking into the possibility of self-publishing my poetry chapbook. I’ve got ideas for starting up a proper monthly newsletter – ideas that involve my now-taken-down novels, as I’ve left Amazon’s KDP program so long as they’re letting AI scour our work.

I don’t have anything set in stone, but heading into 2026 with plans brewing is helping stave off wondering why I’m not where I want to be in life, yet. Especially considering I actually accomplished quite a bit!

This year, I:

·         Released my debut book, The Other Face of Sympathy, which is available in bookstores and online!

·         Completed my first term of university with a decent GPA

·         Went to my first book con and met some lovely authors

·         Did my first book fair

·         Wrote a novella throwing shade at genAI

·         Put two more books on submission with my agent

·         Won the Inkwell Literary Festival’s second place short story award

… all while continuing to single parent and keep myself financially afloat! That last one, I couldn’t have done without assistance, so a deeply grateful shout-out to my family (both blood related and not) for everything you gave me, both this year and every other.

There are other personal accomplishments I shouldn’t discount, too, like:

·         Adopted our beloved calico kitten, Madame President

·         Helped my kid find an extracurricular activity she’s really taken to

·         Got back on medications to help control my blood sugar

·         Made some wonderful new friends, both online and off

I feel like I’m on a good path, overall.

What have y’all accomplished this year? What’s happened that you’re proud of, thankful for?

I hope 2026 ushers in some good luck for us all!