1. THERE IS NO EXPIRATION DATE ON MY CAREER.

I have signed no contracts, made no binding promises. If or when I do so, those terms can be negotiated as I see fit. The most important contract I have made is to myself. I AM FREE. I CAN DO WHATEVER I WANT WITH MY LIFE AND MY WORK.

2. I CAN TAKE MY TIME.

Corollary of the above: I answer to myself first. My vision takes precedence above all external pressure. I DO THIS WORK FOR MYSELF, AND ONLY MY TIMELINE MATTERS.

3. I CAN ASK FOR HELP.

My mentors and communities are all here to support me. This is their calling. They want to help. I can make myself vulnerable and forge meaningful connections by not pretending that I'm above it all.

4. I AM DOING A HARD THING: CREATIVITY DESERVES REVERENCE.

Writing is alchemy: making something out of nothing. I am turning raw, insubstantial moods into something legible, tangible. No birth is painless or easy. Give the act of creation its proper due.

5. I MUST LET MY WORK GO.

Every child is its own autonomous being. Every creation is its own autonomous thing. At a certain point, the work belongs in the world, out of my control. Though I may grieve the loss of my work - and fear the judgment of others - I must let my creations exist apart from me, or they will die.

6. FEAR IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FAILURE.

Everything bold comes with a cost. Pay this exhilarating cost (fear, anxiety, doubt, possible failure) or experience the constant banality of regret. There is no other way.

7. THE WORK NEVER ENDS, SO PERFECTIONISM IS USELESS.

I will always fall short of the best version of myself. This is because the best of my life is yet to come. I will always fall short of the best version of whatever humanity can produce. This is because humanity is more intelligent, more beautiful, and more mysterious than any individual can be alone. To charge myself with "perfection" is to chase an end state that can never (and should never) be reached by any one person, let alone by a person at the start of their career. To place an imperfect mark on space-time - to make one step towards creation - is work enough. Do not diminish this work by holding it to an inhuman standard.

8. I AM MORE THAN MY WORK.

I am more than my first book, my second book, and all my work combined. I am a full person: a devoted friend, a community leader, a website maker, a fanfic writer, a visual artist, a game designer, a student, a teacher, a family member, and an incomprehensible being besides. I am a real person. My writing is not me; it is a part of me. My publishing ventures can crash and burn, but I will still remain. What is more important than the book: love for language, the desire to observe, a moving mind, empathy for others, an understanding of narrative, a desire to challenge the world as it stands, and so much more. Creativity is the capacity to survive in many forms, under many identities, across many lives. I have many more lives than the one(s) I decide to record on paper. No matter what, I am in the world, and I will survive.