Giving Thanks, Learning Lessons: A Thanksgiving Reflection on My First Year as an Author

Happy Thanksgiving

As the leaves turn and the holiday season officially kicks off, it feels like the perfect time to pause and truly reflect. While the focus this week is often on turkey, football, and time with loved ones, my heart is overflowing with gratitude for a different reason: you.

First and foremost, I want to take a moment to say a massive thank you to those of you who have supported my writing journey. It has been an incredible ride, and your belief in my stories has been the fuel that kept me going through a year filled with towering learning curves.

A Year of Incredible Highs and Unexpected Lows

This first year as an author has been life-changing. I have learned so many things—both about the craft of storytelling and the business of publishing. The outpouring of support from readers has been a dream come true, but I must be transparent: the publishing industry, particularly for independent authors, is fraught with challenges.

The biggest lesson I learned—and truly, my biggest regret this year—was trusting too implicitly.

When you're starting out, you rely heavily on the professionals around you. I trusted my publisher and editors completely, which, in hindsight, was a major mistake. In the rush to meet deadlines and launch my work, my books were published without me taking the necessary time to read every single edited line before launch.

And unfortunately, lots of things went wrong.

Transparency and the Fix for Dark Scales of Justice

The errors became most noticeable in Dark Scales of Justice. Readers began sharing reviews pointing out mistakes that should have been caught long before the book ever landed in your hands. Hearing that feedback was difficult, but necessary.

It was a hard-won lesson in the necessity of author vigilance. I have since put everything on hold to personally go back through the manuscript, edit the book meticulously, and re-publish the corrected version.

This is my sincere promise to you: I hope everything is corrected at this point, and that the quality of the reading experience now matches the story I intended to tell.

A Note to Kindle Readers: If you received an early Kindle copy of Dark Scales of Justice, please take a moment to re-upload the new version. Your reading experience will be significantly improved with the corrected text.

Looking Forward with Gratitude

The integrity of my work and the quality I deliver to you, my readers, is paramount. Hang in there with me as I promise to continually improve my skill as a writer. It truly is an honor to share my stories with the world, and I am deeply committed to ensuring that future releases meet the highest standard of professionalism.

This Thanksgiving season, as we gather around tables and cherish moments small and large, I hope it brings you immense happiness and quality time spent with family, friends, and loved ones.

I give thanks to all of you who have taken a chance on my books and supported this wild, unpredictable, wonderful journey.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Michaela