Ultimately, You Only Have One Life, So Why Not Just Go For It?

Yeah, I know it's a loaded question, but why not consider it?

DISCLAIMER: This is not a sponsored post. I am not affiliated with Freewrite in any capacity, and all opinions are my own.

“You can just do things.”

Whenever I check my Twitter these days (yes, Letters From the Castle is now officially on Twitter, and I look forward to seeing you there!), it’s one of the more common things I see, and now that I’ve been on Substack for almost a month, I find myself thinking about it more and more, not least because I never thought I’d be here.

I always wanted to be a writer, but during my undergrad, I thought the best way to do it was to publish a bestselling Y.A. book, which is among my biggest goals. (I’m writing it right now, and I’m submitting it as my master’s thesis). Before joining Substack, though, I’d only heard of it vaguely, but I knew it grew hugely during COVID; my dad even encouraged me to sign up in July 2022. But because I didn’t know what to post about, I didn’t even entertain the thought.

In retrospect, I probably couldn’t have made a more unwise decision. If I’d have just continued the conversation, I’m sure I could’ve figured out how to start and found the courage to work, but instead, I stayed silent. If I hadn’t, I could’ve generated a very comfortable income by now and been living the life of my dreams, or at least been very close to realizing it. Instead, I’m still pushing, pushing, pushing to gain my first hundred subscribers, after which I’ll charge full speed ahead to turn Letters From the Castle into a serious publication by the end of the summer.

But to be honest, I’m not bitter. True, I couldn’t be happier about all the work I’m doing, but I still sometimes think about how differently my life could’ve gone until now. Fortunately, the regret isn’t something that overwhelms me, or even something that I feel frequently enough that I’m used to it, but it does appear sometimes, especially when I see that some of the girls I follow are still in their teens; right now, I’m in my mid-twenties. Personally, I don’t really believe life is short, but still, it’s a horrible waste of potential to never try new things just because you might fail or turn out not to be good enough, whichever you think is worse. Well, guess what? No matter how old or experienced you are when you start something new, you’ll always be nervous and it’ll always take you a little time to find your sea legs. If you want to succeed, you’ll have to fall seven times and stand up eight, but it’s up to you.

I mean, I’ve been writing since age ten, but I still have to start each piece as soon as I publish the last one, and then I have to be very careful as I go through multiple revisions before I submit. (Writer’s tip: Don’t ever procrastinate projects, or anything else. The earlier you start, the easier it is to produce excellent work.) No matter how many times I go through the writing process, the first draft will always be undefeated, but will it stop me? No way! In fact, I’ve found that the more I revise my work, the more enjoyable it becomes. Once you play to your strengths and lean into the challenges, any new endeavor helps you grow that much more as a person. If I’d let my fear of imperfect draft – and sometimes, I do feel it – hold me back, then I wouldn’t have gotten anywhere, especially here, talking to you and enriching your lives.

You don’t need a five-year plan or an airtight pitch deck. You just need the willingness to begin. Progress isn’t always flashy. Sometimes it looks like writing alone at night, rereading something for the seventh time, wondering if it’s good enough. But every step – every attempt – is part of the climb.

I mean, yeah, I’m still super young, but when I look back, I can’t believe I let fear dominate so much of my adolescence. Thank God I’m better now, but still, the weight that made me feel safest at home instead of experiencing all the world has to offer isn’t something I can easily forget. As such, when I decided to start my Substack, I immediately resolved to take it to the finish because there was no point in writing otherwise. As always, I wrote the first draft of my first post on my portable Freewrite typewriter, totally in the zone, but when it came time to upload it to my drafts, I couldn’t stop wiping my palms on my leggings.

As I reviewed everything one last time, hoping there were no mistakes, my heart wasn’t really pounding, but I kept having to set aside my computer and take a sip from my water bottle, even walking to the kitchen to stretch my legs. My mom was there, baking something sweet, and she hugged me, kissing my head.

“Don't be nervous, love,” she said. “You have no obligation, no deadline, and what matters is that your writing’s authentic. I’m sure people will love it.”

Needless to say, that’s what we should all hear as writers, no matter where we are in our journey, and with that in mind, I took a deep breath and pressed the “Submit” button; I felt like a big weight was lifted off my shoulders, and I took a deep breath, savoring the moment. After so long, I’d put myself out there in a way I knew would pay off with a little hard work and perseverance, and I just felt so cool and official that I was finally on Substack. I mean, who needed something as vapid as Instagram when you could find all kinds of profound insights here? From poems to short stories to thought pieces and even business and lifestyle guides, the well was endless, and I couldn’t have been happier that I was finally contributing to the global conversation and maybe even helping others find their way.

Likewise, I know very well that while the first step is often the most important, it’s also very much the hardest, but once we find it in ourselves to take it, life will open up to us in new ways that we never imagined. Once time passes, it’s gone for good, and since you’re only here once, you owe it to yourself to live as fully as possible. I know it’s scary to get outside your comfort zone, but that's where life begins.

So yeah, why not go for it? You might just surprise yourself. I mean, I certainly did.

Thank you again for reading my work! If you’re so inclined, please consider buying me a $5 coffee on my Ko-fi page.