I am rarely lost for words to write, but this morning I am. Almost.

I’ve hit a milestone, and I’m pretty excited about it. I’m also wary of tooting my own horn. No one likes braggarts, but here I am about to be one because I feel like I owe it to those who’ve read CAIRNAERIE to let them know that they have lots of company.

Yep. They have helped me cross the 1000-books-sold line in just 38 weeks.

When I started writing this book, I tried hard not to imagine what it would feel like to actually publish it. I didn’t want to get ahead of myself because there was a lot of work ahead of me — and because a very wise man once told me, “Don’t speculate.” All speculation does is raise one’s expectations and, ultimately, it can lead to disappointment. Most of life’s “what ifs” are better left unasked — unless you’re plotting a novel, of course. Otherwise, speculation is emotionally draining and useless.

So, as hard as it was, I never let myself dream. (Ok, I did dream a little when I hit the publish button — but not too much.) Lots of life’s dreams don’t come true, and disappointment is a bitter pill. Instead, I simply hoped to recoup some of my publishing cost, which was modest.

Yet here I am, having sold 1004 books. I am as surprised as anyone. That’s not supposed to happen to self-published writers. It wasn’t supposed to happen to me, but it has.

I won’t speculate if this is the beginning of something bigger or an end to something great. Time and my stats will tell me that. In the meantime, I’ll just wait and watch and work on other projects.

As I ponder this milestone, I am exceedingly grateful to all those book lovers who have taken the time to read, rate, and review CAIRNAERIE. If there were ever a perfect time to write thank you notes, then it is now.

I would like to write 1004.

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