The messy middle: Where success is earned

When you start something new, the applause is deafening.

I’ll never forget August 23, 2022. My debut contemporary romance novel, I Loved You Yesterday, launched with a celebration that felt like a dream. Friends from every corner of my life showed up. Family, colleagues, former classmates—it seemed like everyone wanted to cheer me on. The room was bursting with energy, with laughter, with pride. I sold out of books that night. And my heart felt bigger than my chest. I remember thinking—I made it. This is what success feels like.

But here’s what no one tells you: after the party, the cheers fade. And the silence? It’s deafening.

By the time my second book, I Love You Today, released three months later, the room was almost empty. By the time I’ll Love You Tomorrow, my third book, launched the following April, I could barely bring myself to host the event. I cried before it started, bracing myself for disappointment I could already feel. And when the night came? I wasn’t wrong. The ghost town stung more than I’d like to admit.

That’s the part no one warns you about. The part no one posts about on Instagram (and if they do, it’s a couple of very carefully curated photos).

It’s called the messy middle.

It’s not exciting. It’s not glamorous. It’s not viral.

It’s the long stretch of invisibility where progress feels pointless and every step forward feels unseen. It’s the chapter where the doubt creeps in, whispering—Maybe I’m not good enough. Maybe no one cares. Maybe I should quit.

And that—right there—is why most people stop. Not because they aren’t talented. Not because they aren’t capable. But because the middle is excruciating. It’s slow. It’s lonely. It’s quiet.

But here’s the truth: the middle is where success is forged. It’s where success is earned.

The middle forces you to grow up as a dreamer. It strips away the dopamine of applause and leaves you face-to-face with only one question: Do you still want this even when no one is watching?

The messy middle is where discipline outlasts motivation. Where consistency outweighs applause. Where you keep showing up for results no one notices.

It’s brutal. But if you endure it? You become dangerous. Because the middle teaches you to build without attention. To move without permission. To believe without evidence.

And once you learn that? Nothing can stop you.

That’s the secret no one tells you. Success isn’t born on launch day. It’s not handed to you in standing ovations or book sales or viral posts. Success is earned in the silence—when you’re invisible but relentless.

So, if you’re in the middle right now, I want you to hear me:

You’re not failing.

You’re not forgotten.

You’re just in training.

Don’t resent the middle. Own it. Hone it. Sharpen it. Because those who master the quiet seasons are the ones who eventually command the loud ones.

Stay loyal to the vision when the room is empty. Stay faithful when the cheers are gone.

As for me? I’m still in the middle. But I see the light ahead. My next manuscript, Love & Honeybuns, goes out on submission next month. And for the first time, I don’t crave the clapping. I don’t need the validation. Because the messy middle has carved me into something stronger.

And maybe that was the point all along.