Whew, 2022 was quite a year. I didn’t think twelve months could pass in such a blur. Guess that’s what happens when life throws curveballs…
I still miss Judah. She was a friend, a “found” family member, a fellow editor, and a cornerstone on my editing team. Losing her to health complications back at the beginning of April was a huge blow. In true Judah fashion, I felt more than one ghostly thwap! during the rest of the year when I needed a reminder to “Keep $#!*^# going.” <laughs> I wasn’t the only one who received them, either.
I also miss Micky. She was another friend and team member taken far too soon. Losing her this past fall was another major loss. While not an editor, Micky’s contributions to my team and the indie author community in general were far greater than she ever realized or would take credit for. If you went to any 20Booksto50k® conferences prior to 20Books Vegas 2022, you probably saw her at the registration check-in table.
Godspeed, ladies—gone but never forgotten.
Celebrating the wins
Amid the sadness were victories. Some were small. Some were large. I celebrated all of them, no matter how exhausted I was from keeping my nose to the grindstone. Working a hundred and twenty-plus hours per week, exhaustion was a constant. I don’t recommend it, but as the old saying goes, “Needs must when the devil drives.” It made the victories that much sweeter.
I’m happy that several projects I initiated are bearing fruit, thanks to my fantastic team getting behind them from the get-go and working with me to launch them. It takes a village to do what we do, not least because things move quickly at high volume and we insist on high quality standards. Sharing our best practices for working smarter contributes to this.
Looking ahead
We’re eight days into the new year as I write this post, and I see a lot of big things ahead. Some are personal goals. Others are company goals. A few are lofty…very lofty. All are attainable, although the timeframes and paths to reach them are fluid. There’s more than one way up the mountain.
Here’s to 2023 and to conquering its challenges and celebrating its victories. On that note, I’m off to continue enjoying the first real break I’ve had in over a year. I’m calling that a major win!
