One Year Later
Thank you. My friends, truly: Thank you.
One year ago today, I did one of the hardest things of my adult life: I sat down and wrote a resignation letter for a job I’d poured my whole soul into for nearly a decade. I’m not very good at letting go when I love something, even when it’s very obviously time to do so. To complicate my feelings even more, things had been stressful and scary for so long I wasn’t in a very good place with believing in myself. I was pretty much a husk of me. I turned on paid subscriptions to this newsletter because I needed a way to support myself and also because I needed to know if other people thought I still had something left to give. Your response absolutely overwhelmed me, and through your financial support and endless kindness about my writing — over the past year — I found myself again.
I had five goals when I left my job:
Turn on paid newsletter subscriptions and get 1,000 free subscribers and 100 paid subscribers.
Craft a brilliant proposal for the book of personal essays I’ve been wanting to write for 15 years.
Land one of my top ten dream agents, one who really, really believes in my book and my writing.
Learn to draw.
Find a way to use my professional expertise and experience + my Long Covid experience to impact the disability community in a positive way.
Here’s how that’s gone:
As of today, I have 3,260 free subscribers and 466 paid subscribers! I was even able to send paid subscribers holiday cards, Socks + Beth March cat stickers, and I BELIEVE IN MAGIC AND MASKS stickers!
It took me nearly eight months, but my book proposal is one of the things I’m most proud of writing, in all my whole life. You should see it. It’s nearly 100 pages and it’s my spirit and all my years of learning to write and my 16 years of professional accomplishments and my dreams laid out so beautifully and professionally!
This spring, I signed with Jessica Friedman of Sterling Lord Literistic. I knew after one phone call that she was going to be my agent. We just clicked, and every single way she has impacted my writing so far has made it better. She’s out on submission with my proposal right now, hoping to sell my book to a publisher this summer.
I did it! I’m learning to draw!
I’m in the process of doing it! I’ve done a handful of freelance projects and a couple of interviews for amazing Long Covid organizations, and I’m hoping this will become an even more regular thing for me as this year progresses.
Here’s what I didn’t expect:
My blood pressure is down. My cholesterol is down. I’ve reversed my pre-diabetes. I’m sleeping through the night. I haven’t had a panic attack in almost a full year. I’ve reconnected with friends I lost contact with, and am still in the process of rebuilding some of those relationships. I’ve read over a hundred books. I fell in love with writing again, and found an ease with it I haven’t felt in years and years. And I reconnected my body and my spirit, which are now humming along in perfect harmony.
The plain truth is that none of this would have been possible without your support. You buoyed me up when I was at my lowest. You reminded me of who I am and the kind of good life I’ve lived. You helped me rediscover my voice. You gave me the courage to start writing with my full heart again. And you empowered me to really try to publish a book.
Thank you. My friends, truly: Thank you.
If you were one of the first people who signed up for a paid subscription, I want to remind you that your one-year charge of $50 is coming up in the next few weeks. I don’t want it to take you by surprise. I want to give you a chance to cancel if you need to, if your financial situation has changed in this last year.
f you haven’t yet signed up for a paid subscription, and my work has meant something to you, would you consider it? You can do it for $5 a month or $50 a year (which is like $4.50 a month). If you’re feeling incredibly generous, you can buy a SUPER SUPPORTER subscription for $150. You’ll get the chance to snag free goodies and cards that I’ll mail to you, heartfelt writing, and the knowledge that you’re supporting a queer writer who’s been doing this with the best intentions for 16 entire years.
No matter what, I am so glad you’re here. Thank you for reading my writing.
You should know we will follow you and your writing to the end of the earth Heather. What you share with us all means so much. I love your pieces even when I don't personally have any similarities, but when I do, oh my goodness it really impacts me. Thank you for all you do.
And I'm so, so glad you are doing much better after branching out on your own. Good luck with the book!
I also left a job that I had had forever last summer, and started my own consulting business. I didn't realize how much that job felt like a core piece of my identity, and it really was messing with my head. I've never been happier, and I'm so glad that it's worked out for you as well!