I have a lot on my plate and my health is tanking. I could share with you everything that is eating my soul right now, but that would be a super-long blog, so I’m going to keep it related to writing and publishing.

Here’s what’s causing me fear:

• At the end of this month I’ll see the sales data for The Name and the Key and I’m scared — what if I’m not successful? I don’t dream of wild success anymore. I just want to earn more than I do on Son of the Siren. That’s a low bar, trust me.
  
• The timeline for The Step and the Walk got sped up to an October 6 release. I only just now printed out my ARC signups, created the art postcards for readers, and sent them off to be printed. The thing is, last time ARCS were given to readers two weeks before release date. The print version of The Step and the Walk isn’t even up for sale yet, and ARCS will be released September 22 if it follows the previous formula. I feel like there’s no time for anything. I’m scared ARC reviews won’t make an impact on The Step and the Walk, and that especially the reviewers won’t mesh with the book, because it’s a completely different animal from The Name and the Key.
  
• I can’t afford to publicize The Step and the Walk like I did for The Name and the Key. I wanted to get editorial reviews from the same places again for continuity, but I don’t have enough money for them all. I’ve narrowed it down to two places, and I just paid one (Reader’s Favorite) yesterday. I’ll have to wait for my second paycheck to get the other one (Literary Titan), and that will take well long after the book releases to get published.
  
• I’m not looking forward to fighting Amazon again on getting editorial reviews added to my book. That story has been an ongoing debacle since 2024 and it will take too long for me explain. But it’s the worst pain ever to deal with and there’s always a fear it won’t work out this time.
  
• We’ve basically followed a rapid release schedule for the trilogy, with the exception of the final book. When my contract for the trilogy was drafted, I gave myself seven months to write each book. I started writing The Fear and the Flame in July, and then…stopped. I have not been able to restart it. I’m too freaked out. As of now I only have four months left to write the entire thing (it’s due in January), and if my health gets worse, what if I can’t write it at all? I don’t want to disappoint my publisher or my readers. And if The Fear and the Flame takes longer for me to write, I don’t want them to abandon the trilogy. I have to find a way to get back into the game.

Add to all of that freaking out the fears about my health and my job, and you’ve got the recipe for a total nervous breakdown. Whee.