It’s that time of year again!

February 22nd marked both my 31st birthday and the end of my 8th year as a published author. Though I didn’t feel like celebrating either event due to a very close uncle of mine passing away just ten days prior, and am still not back to feeling like my normal self, I don’t want to skip doing this recap because these posts are some of my favorites to look back on. So, let’s dive into the lessons I learned during my eighth full year as a published author.

If you haven’t yet read about years one through seven, check out those posts below:

• My First Year as a Published Author
• My Second Year as a Published Author
• My Third Year as a Published Author
• My Fourth Year as a Published Author
• My Fifth Year as a Published Author
• My Sixth Year as a Published Author
• My Seventh Year as a Published Author

Lesson One: Sometimes, You Just Need to Press Pause on Your Dreams

I never thought I’d admit this. As much as I’ve preached and preached on this blog about pursuing your dreams with all you’ve got, never giving up, and never stop believing that God can change your circumstances in the blink of an eye, over the past several months, I’ve fallen into a major life slump that has, in turn, led to burnout concerning authorship.

I enjoy writing my current work-in-progress, but truth be told, I haven’t felt like writing much lately. I’m grateful and touched by the feedback The Dream received after it was published two months ago, but all the obstacles I endured during its release left a bad taste in my mouth, so much so that I’ve barely thought about reading the first draft of my next intended release, let alone making any plans for releasing it. I used to be so pumped to market my books on Instagram with Reels and carousels, but lately it’s felt more like a chore and my follower count has hovered at precisely 1,727 for an embarrassing number of months because of it.

I’m not giving up, but I’ve felt a growing need to press pause on pursuing my author dreams over the past year. In order to not totally lose my love for writing and publishing, it’s the best thing for me in this season of life.

How long will the pause last? I don’t know. So many things have been going on in my personal life that have, admittedly, made me feel like my life is falling apart. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, please continue to pray for me.

What will the pause entail? I’m not sure. I don’t want to give up blogging. That’s one of the few things I still enjoy doing. Writing Follow the Arrows is hit or miss. But marketing and publishing are most likely going to sit on the back burner for a while, until I feel better. However long that takes.

Nevertheless, I have confidence in the fact that I can take as long as I need to mend, because…

Lesson Two: God Still Shines Through Our Weakness

 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

-2 Corinthians 12:9-10, ESV

Over the past year, through falling into this life slump and trying to bring it before God, I’ve lived out the two verses above.

If I’m willing to sit down and try to write, even when it’s the last thing I feel like doing, God still provides me with words.

Even if I’ve taken weeks off from marketing my books, God still puts the books on the radar of new readers.

Despite 11 months out of 2024 being months where my latest release was 2 years old, God still provided book sales, which stayed pretty consistent with the year before, and He has maintained the no no-sales month miracle for 3 years straight.

The most important lesson I’ve learned in my eighth year as a published author is that no matter how powerless we feel, God is still powerful. No matter how little we are able to give, He can still use our “meager” offerings in a mighty way.

Indie publishing experts would probably roll their eyes upon reading this, but we’re not meant to write, write, write! publish, publish, publish! 24/7 until the end of time. God created the Sabbath day for a reason, and that reason is to be a time of rest. Concerning farming, He also intends farmland to rest every seven years so the land will be restored (Leviticus 25:1-5). In Leviticus 25:6-7, it goes on to say that the Sabbath period will provide food for all who need it. While being an Indie author involves completely different work and outcomes than farming, it is still true that God honors breaks for the right reasons and that He will still provide what is needed through them.

Talk to Me, Arrowheads!

I know this post is shorter than some of the others from this series, and that these lessons could apply to other areas of life that are not related to authorship, but I still feel that they were important to share and hope they help you in some way.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for taking a chance on reading this blog, and/or my books. Bless you for joining me on this journey, as challenging as it may be at times.

Aim high, stay strong, and always hit your mark.

-Allyson 😀