When I used to think about “making it” as a writer, I had these lofty ideas that were mostly formed by the flashy sort of stuff you see in the movies. Becoming an overnight sensation, hitting the NYT Bestseller list, getting some big book deal that uses super vague gate-keepy language to essentially say “this person is getting paid lots of dollars for this book”. What I have learned in my actual experience though is that “making it” is entirely subjective, and these days, I feel like I’m settling into what my own version of that looks like.

I don’t make the bestseller lists, or sell tons of copies of the four published works I’ve put out there–but the people who have read my work? It meant something to them. I might not be selling out theaters to do big shiny readings, but I’ve gotten to read my work in front of a class of kids from my hometown high school, and have them put a copy of my book that I started writing when I was a student on the actual shelves of their library.

Then there’s the latest step in this weird defining journey, in which my long time friend and fellow writer, C. Brennecke, and I launched our own indie press. This felt like a game changer moment, because now not only was I going to be able to continue publishing my own works, I was going to be able to be part of other people’s publishing journeys.

I think back to my first ever published work, a short story called CONTINUUM, which was featured in Issue 02 of the now retired Wizards in Space Literary Magazine. That lit mag was also the first time I was ever paid for my writing, and while it was a mere $30 stipend, I’d never been more proud to make $30 in my life. I hoped then that one day I’d get to be part of that for other authors. That I might be able to help run an organization that not only encouraged writers, but that paid and promoted their dreams as well.

Running Elixir Verse Press this past year has been a dream in so many ways, and since our launch in September, I’ve already had so many rewarding experiences and interactions with other writers. But today, we’re taking that next bold step, and announcing that while we’d initially only planned to release our own lit mag (the Elixir Verse Equinox) digitally, we are now working to make it available in a beautiful print-on-demand edition so that our authors have the chance to not just see their work published online, but have it to hold as a tangible book in their hands.

The funds from this campaign go directly to paying our authors and maintaining daily operations, which will help us to continue publishing endeavors in the future as we grow. Today is our soft launch, so as subscribers to my newsletter, y’all get to be among the first to know before we announce it publicly and start shouting about it from the rooftops on Tuesday the 16th. While I know times are tough financially for most of us these days, I hope you’ll consider supporting us in whatever amount makes sense for you.

As I think about the fact that soon, this new collection of creative works I’ve helped piece together will be out in the world, I find myself really hoping that others can find something useful to take away from these stories, or the journey I’ve shared. If you are a writer out here who too has big dreams of “making it”, I hope this post allows you to sit back and reflect, taking stock of what really matters to you creatively.

Writing is something that can be really exciting and lucrative as a career, even if the competition is steep. But writing can also be a soft thing you do for yourself. Your success as a writer doesn’t need to be measured by anyone’s standards but your own. Success can be a poem in a brand new little lit mag or launching an entire press. It can be having a blog post read by someone you’ll never meet or self-publishing the book of your dreams. Your success is yours, and I invite you to let yourself be joyful in that knowledge rather than feeling like you have to measure up to anyone else.

As always, thanks for reading, and here’s to the future of the Equinox. No matter the campaign outcome, this project is, and always will be, one I am proud to be part of.

Support the campaign on IndieGoGo here!

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Featured Photo by Gaman Alice on Unsplash