Echo 4: The Gales Hour: Lonely and Quiet on Launch Day.
Length: 334 words • 2 min read
Themes: Launching, Quiet Resolve, Hope, Letting Go
Heartbeat: A still moment on launch day — quiet, unresolved, but full of meaning.
It is so quiet.
I’m not sure what it really means to release a novel. To be judged by it — or through it. For people to respond, nod, move on — or simply not respond at all.
My last post was about being discounted. About the complicated, often uncomfortable work of asking for support. I knew that moment would come. I knew I’d have to face the silence that follows the ask — and sit with everything it brings up.
Now I’m in that silence.
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.
But waiting isn’t the same as doing nothing. This is my final week of working on the novel full-time, before I shift into a new rhythm — supporting it quietly, from the edges, as life resumes around it.
This week, I’m doing what I can. Reaching out. Sharing the story. Trusting the work. Reminding myself: I wrote this novel. The story that wouldn’t stay quiet. I wrote it to offer a perspective — one not often seen. To say something I believe needs to be heard, globally.
The early responses are in now — Advance Reader Copy (ARC) reviews, shared before launch, have been incredibly moving. The Goodreads average is 4.64/5 — a strong start, in line with the editorial reviews. I believe in this novel. Reading those early reflections has been deeply emotional. I know the work now is to stay relentless — to keep reaching, keep asking for support. I will do that.
So if you’re reading this — and especially if you’ve already ordered The Gales of Alexandria — thank you. Thank you for giving it a chance. For walking into the quiet with me, and staying a little longer.
This is a quiet post for a quiet launch. But still, I believe in the wind ahead.
A layered novel, told through voices rarely heard. Stories like this only travel because of readers like you.
If the story behind the book resonates with you — if it feels like a perspective worth hearing — thank you for sitting with it.
I’d be grateful if you helped it travel, whether by sharing, recommending, or leaving a quick review. It all makes a difference.
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