I was told I would never be a writer at 11.

I got rejected from journalism school at 18.

Publishers that passed on my first book: 27

I experienced a debilitating depression at 30.

I barely hung in there, but I did.

I kept reading. I kept writing.

I did it for the love of the game.

I surrounded myself with good people.

I kept going.

Eventually skill and luck collided.

On my 5th book, about to turn 40, I hit the New York Times bestseller list.

You can’t control the timing.

(Do not compare your timeline to someone else’s.)

You never know when it’s going to click.

All you can do is keep showing up.