As I do my annual year of review, I think the title I would give this past year would be one of acceptance.

Acceptance that my son is grown up and off to college and is now on his own – that was a hard one for me.

Acceptance that I can’t do it all. That was brought to a head when I fell and broke my shoulder and had to have surgery. I suddenly found that I had to accept help from other people. I had to realize that it was okay to receive help, I couldn’t do everything by myself.

I had to except the death of a couple of pets and mourn their passing, while rejoicing in the years they gave us. I accepted two new kittens into my life and I have had a ball from day one.

But I think the biggest acceptance that I made this year with this fact that, yes, I am a writer. I accepted that this wasn’t just a fluke, that I really do love the write. With two books under my belt, I guess I can safely call myself a writer. So this year has been spent on finishing off book number two, promoting my books, writing my blogs(Pen in Hand & Gossip from the Southern Garden) and getting the website up (VictoriaLKWilliams.com).

This was a big acceptance. I no longer have to be embarrassed to say I write books. I have accepted it, own up to it, moved forward and strive to improve with each page that I write. Along with that acceptance the ideas have begun to flow. I have an outline for three different series, with multiple books within each series. I am so excited to get to them.

But the one acceptance I’ve also had to make is the fact that I still have my own job to do, and my family to take care of. They have to come first. There will be a time in my life when I will be a full-time writer. But right now I just have to except that each page I write, each book I publish is one more step towards that ultimate goal.

So, for now, I will accept being a writer part time while I look forward to my “retirement years”.