I Have Finally Done It!!!

Well, folks, I can officially say I’ve crossed a major milestone in my life — I’ve written my first novel! Cue the confetti, fireworks, and probably a few tears (mostly tears of relief, I swear).

After years of scribbling in notebooks, pounding away at my keyboard, and convincing myself that “this is the one,” I’ve finally completed a full manuscript. Yes, finally. I’ve been writing for so long that I might as well have been carving my stories into stone tablets — but thankfully, I stuck with the digital age instead.

You see, my writing journey has been a bit like a long, winding quest in a tabletop RPG (TTRPG, for those in the know). I’ve rolled a few critical failures but also some glorious successes. My characters have fought dragons, survived awkward family dinners, and debated whether emotion can truly conquer a bad guy — or is that just a cliché? (I’ll let you decide.) Trust me, that’s a real thing in my stories.

In addition to my years of scribbling (and occasional screaming into the void – funnily enough, the void is in my novels), I’ve dabbled in screenwriting. Because what’s better than writing a story that might someday be turned into a movie? Well, I, for one, am finally finishing that novel. Turns out, screenplays and novels are like different species of the same writing family – both require a lot of coffee, caffeine, and desperately trying to hide your inner perfectionist. Except now, I’ve replaced coffee with dodgy energy drinks that probably have more caffeine than a rocket launch.

But here’s the truth: it’s been a wild ride. There were moments I thought I’d never finish, like when my characters refused to cooperate or when I realised my plot was more tangled than a scrum during a Six Nations rugby match. Yet somehow, I persisted. I kept telling myself, “You’ve got this,” even when I wanted to throw my laptop out the window (don’t worry, I didn't).

So, what’s next? Well, I’m officially in the editing phase, which is just a fancy word for “trying not to cry every time I read my own work". But I’m proud, excited, and maybe a little scared — because, let’s face it, putting your art out into the world is like walking into a tavern full of dragons with a sign that says “Feed Me Feedback".

This is just the beginning. If my past is any indication, I’ll be juggling writing; TTRPG campaigns—core rule books and all; and maybe even a few screenplays—all while trying to remember to take breaks and not live on dodgy energy drinks alone.

Thanks for coming along on this journey. Stay tuned, because I plan to keep writing, keep laughing, and maybe even figure out how to write a sequel set in a fantasy desert land.

Until then — I did it. I finally did it.