The Courage to Take the Leap – My Journey to Publishing and Beyond

As a writer, most of the time, you’re working with your head down, feverishly plotting, drafting, and editing. Then, suddenly, you finish your manuscript, and it’s like a diver coming up for air. You lift your head up and take a look around, seeing how the world has changed.
That’s when it hits you. Being a writer is way more than just putting words on a page. It’s about putting those words out in the world where they will be judged and criticized. Publishing a book is every writer’s dream and every writer’s fear.
As I prepare my manuscript (Oreia’s story) ready for publication, I’ve been reflecting a lot on my journey—on how a sporty woman with a PhD in engineering ever ended up publishing an action fantasy novel…
But that’s exactly what I’m going to do. There are no if’s or maybe’s. Someway, somehow, I will publish this book, and I’d like to share with you some of the life lessons that have made me so certain of that.
I hope these little stories resonate with you, whether you’re also a writer trying to publish or just someone navigating the challenges of life.

Fortune favors the brave.

My brother and I in our early years of skiing before we did "brave" things.

​It’s an old Latin proverb, but I know it best from my brother. He always says that right before he does something that seems questionable or ill-advised. Once when we were skiing as teens, we got to the top of a double-back diamond slope that dropped off straight down, shining with a crust of ice the whole way. It was daunting enough that I half-looked for a different slope we could take instead. But my brother took one look at it and yelled, “fortune favors the brave!” as he plunged over the edge of slope. He gave me the courage to jump in after him, although I would never tell him that.
Fortune certainly does seem to favor the brave, although I might amend that statement a bit because it takes more than just bravery. To me, bravery can be nothing more than rose-colored glasses and bull-headed momentum. If you just put your head down and charge blindly forward, you’ll get what you want. But that’s not usually true.

Success takes strategy and sweat. It takes cautious risks and wild optimism. Give me just a few minutes of your time to tell you what I’ve learned about how living life outside of your comfort zone can open so many doors for you.

​Lesson 1: You have to put the work in constantly and consistently

When I was 17, the high school tennis team needed players. I had never played tennis before, but I was very athletic so I gave it a shot. I trained all summer and by the time tryouts came around in August, I knew all of the rules of the game and could hold my own in a semi-competitive match. I wasn’t fantastic but I made 2nd doubles and had a lot of fun. By senior year, I had improved enough that I was bumped up to 3rd singles and qualified for Pennsylvania state competitions. 

​Lesson learned:
Going after what you want takes effort. No one is immediately good at something they just start. Doing something new—like publishing your first book—is a slow, difficult process,​ but it can be worth it. You need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
In writing and publishing, that may mean researching what other people are doing, reading books, and watching lectures. It may also mean trial-and-error. See what works and what doesn’t, and keep track of it all.

​Lesson 2: Changing your course is not failure, and failure is not the end

I played tennis for two years and had a lot fun with it. After high school, I went to college at Cornell University for mechanical engineering. I went from the top of my high school class to rock bottom in a hurry. I got a 27% on my first calculus exam. The pressure to succeed was crushing me. I was constantly studying and going to tutoring sessions just to pass my classes.
Mechanical engineering was making me miserable, but I refused to accept it because I thought that meant I had failed. I didn’t have a plan B, but I also didn’t see a path forward for plan A.
Then, by chance, I took a genetics course just to get a break from physics and math, and I fell in love. That same semester, I switched from mechanical engineering to biological engineering, and it was the best decision of my life.
One way to look at that story is to say that I failed at mechanical engineering, but another way is to realize that I found my place in biological engineering. 

Lesson learned:
Failure isn’t the end. I promise you that failing my first calculus exam was rough. I think my exact words were feeling like I “got mauled by a tiger, trampled by elephants, and run over by a Mack truck” (my parents still like to remind me of that). But I survived that failure. In some ways, it made me stronger. It’s something I’m weirdly proud of now because I got a 27% and didn’t give up. I passed that class by the end of the semester, and now, ten years later, I have an amazing career.
Switching paths is a new direction, not failure. We all end up on the wrong path sometimes. In my example, I was making myself miserable trying to force mechanical engineering to work. Switching my major wasn’t a failure for me; it was discovering a better path and taking it.
When it comes to publishing, these lessons have helped me realize that I don’t have to have my heart set on traditional publishing or indie publishing. I’m also not defined by how my first book works out. Maybe, the world will love it. Maybe, no one will read it. What matters is that I keep moving forward, refining my course as I go.

Lesson 3: Learn when to take risks

I loved biological engineering so much that I stayed at Cornell for nearly 10 years before finally graduating with my PhD. During that time, fantasy writing became a creative outlet for all of the stress I was under.
​Now, I have a career as a medical writer that I love, and my fiction writing has become more of a hobby than a crutch. The final lesson I want to share with you is the art of knowing when to take risks for what you want.

The key here is to take the right risks. I’m not suggesting that you blow all of your money on lottery tickets or go sky diving blindfolded. I’m saying that if there is something you really want, sometimes you have to take risks to get it. You can plan and do all of the prep work in the world, but in some cases it all comes down to one final leap into the abyss.
Publishing is that leap for me. I’ve read books on publishing and edited the living daylights out of my manuscript. I’ve had beta readers review and comment on my project. I’ve done everything I can think of to make my manuscript the best it can be.
Now, all I can do is jump.
​
Lesson learned:
Stay tuned…
We will discover together how this latest leap of mine goes. I wish you luck in all of your leaps, and I hope you wish me luck in mine!

​Final Thoughts

I invite you to take a leap with me. Whatever it is you want to do—whether it’s a new career, publishing a book, or asking your crush out—take a risk and go for it. Know that you may fail, but failure is better than never trying at all.
Fortune favors the brave.
Fortune favors the people who give it their all and don’t back down. 
In the end, this life is about more than just bravery. You need resilience, perseverance, and faith. Take that leap, knowing that whether you land on your feet or stumble, you made progress. Every step, no matter how small, moves you forward along your unique path in life.

You are not alone
As writers, we all know that only one name appears on the cover of a book, but the truth is that no author works alone. Ask for help, advice, or just good old-fashioned support. 
You can always reach out to me, too ([email protected]). I'm not an expert, but I'd be happy to listen and provide advice where I can.