Timing is Everything

I don't know about you, but I struggle with change. I like order and routine. I need the sense of stability it provides. Lately, God has been speaking to me about seasons. Seasons change. In most places, there are four seasons: spring, summer, fall, and winter. I live in Florida. (We also have four seasons: hot, cold, wet, and dry. LOL) The things that are reasonable to do in spring might not be feasible in winter. So, we have to change to adapt to winter's environment.

Life is the same way. For about a decade, I went through a season where writing and publishing consumed the majority of my time and thoughts. Oh, I had brief periods where other things took priority. That's life, but for the most part, my focus was on writing the next book, how to get my books in front of readers, and enticing readers to buy my books. I was building a business.

Then a shift happened. It was so gradual I didn't notice at first. Frustration crept in. It felt like nothing I tried--none of the expert recommendations—worked. Sales continued to trend down. Burnout came next. Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result may be the definition of insanity, but constantly trying different things and getting the same result is the definition of physical and emotional burnout.

I began to despise anything related to marketing and advertising. I stopped stalking most of my professional author groups and unfollowed the majority of them. I deleted my Instagram account. Stopped promoting on TikTok and let my business Facebook page go dormant. I kept up with my reader newsletter, barely.

I stopped writing. If no one was buying the books, what was the point? I kept my website and began translating my book catalog into other languages using ScribeShadow. I stopped paying for my books to be narrated into audiobooks. (I have a human narrator I like to use, though I'm not opposed to AI.)

Whereas before I couldn't conceive of a world in which I no longer wrote books, now I was at peace with the idea of never hitting "publish" again. Basically, I had one foot out the door of self-publishing and the other raised to cross over the threshold.

But God...

What I learned through prayer is that like the world around me, my season had changed. A wise person will recognize it and make the necessary adjustments. Fighting to remain where I was when my environment had already changed is foolish. Like a person planting a spring garden when the signs of an incoming winter are all around. They can sow the seeds, but they won't reap a harvest because it's the wrong season.

Now I'm learning what's required of me in this season.

In addition to being an avid reader and author, I'm a home improvement DIYer. As my nest emptied, I've been slowly remodeling my house, room by room, a little at a time. In November of 2024, worry about the quality of food in the grocery stores caused me to get into hydroponic gardening, growing food inside of my home. Due to warnings of coming food shortages, in October, I started a church community garden and have slowly been expanding it to increase our food growing capacity. Last month, I built a 4 x 16 raised garden bed in my front yard to grow food for me and my family. In short, I've basically become a prepper.

My focus and priorities have shifted. Most importantly, I'm at peace with it. Don't get me wrong. Life is still life-ing. I have a new supervisor at work who, for the last year, has managed to totally disrupt my work environment. I resigned from some positions I held at church and picked up others. Family issues come and go, and I can't turn on the news without getting depressed.

I haven't totally given up on publishing. I'm still working on my translations. Last fall I gave myself a three-month challenge in which I wrote and published two short stories I was pleased with and got a really good start on a few others. I do plan to finish those books and others. It's all a matter of seasons and timing.

Have you noticed a shifting of seasons in your life? If so, write a comment and tell me about it. How are you handling it?