A ,ajor anniversary that almost flew right past me – it’s 6 years since I started writing! So, a short look back is in order.

I’ve talked a lot more about my journey last year, as 5-year anniversary seems like a more noticeable milestone.

Looking at things month-by-month, as I do… monthly (surprise!), it often seems like my progress is barely visible even in months when I give it a fair amount of time. But if I look back at the whole journey…

Since 21.7.2015, when I wrote the first lines (actually, almost a whole chapter), I guess I’ve managed to achieve something. I wrote one book into the final version and released it into the world, first in Kindle (October 2020) and then in paperback (May 2021) formats. I made some work on books two and three as well as light work on potential prequels and ideas for other projects in the same universe. Like this, it doesn’t seem like nothing, I guess.

What I value the most is all the experience, the learning, the progress I’ve made. Not just in writing, but also other things that were part of the journey – such as random things I’ve learned from documentaris or browsing Wikipedia to look up something for my story. I think I’ve became more open to some things, especially to arts in general, and expanded my horizons a bit.

I’ve even tried to help others, for whatever it was worth, by beta-reading – a skill that has still a lot of room for growth.

Some people will talk about what a great feeling it is to hold your own book in your hands, but I was never into collecting physical stuff, so my first (and only) thoughts were “damn, this is huge”.

And, in case you’re curious, the royalties my book earned me so far are exactly 11 euro. Yay! But, as I said, it’s the journey for me, and you can’t really put a price tag on all the experience I gained. So, thanks to everyone who was, is, and may be a part of my journey.

For thes celebratory occassion, I’m re-posting the hand (mouse?)-drawn image of a bookish cake that I won’t replace, because my digital drawing skills are meh and the next attempt may end up even worse. Either way, I hope this journey is nowhere near the end for me.

Thanks for being around, and see you next time!