Some reflections quietly signal turning points. This entry explores the emotional intensity of launching The Gales of Alexandria, introduces my next honest step—the goal of reaching 300 reader voices in 100 days—and considers my return to professional work. It’s about moving forward thoughtfully, inviting genuine participation, and recognizing that both personal and professional journeys enrich each other.

Publishing a novel — especially one like this, layered, political, and personal — isn’t a burst of light.

It’s a long, uneven breath. It doesn’t land with fanfare. It wants to be discovered slowly, deliberately. And so I wait. I’m learning to wait. Learning, too, how to begin moving forward

It takes courage to create. It takes a different kind of courage to ask.
It’s already frightening enough to offer your work to the world—to lay your soul and integrity bare. But beyond that deep fear, there’s another: openly asking for support, risking that something crafted with heart and sincerity might feel transactional.

Some reviews do more than share opinions—they quietly shift perspectives.
This reflection dives into my first professional review from BookLife by Publishers Weekly, exploring my initial misunderstanding, the subtle power of quiet praise, and why embracing complexity became central to The Gales of Alexandria. It's about the unexpected ways a stranger’s insights can help us see our work—and ourselves—more clearly.

Some stories demand to be told—they haunt us, pull us from sleep, and quietly shape our lives. This is a reflection on the relentless energy behind The Gales of Alexandria: why it refused to remain silent, how its characters became inescapable, and the personal and professional crossroads that led to finally sharing it. Now, as the novel approaches release, I explore what it means when a story chooses you, and how it feels to finally put it into readers' hands.