No Limits: A New Life Principle for Growth and Inspiration

There are no limits on me.

This is one of my new principles for life.

You know, the phrases and mantras you set to help you make decisions and navigate your way of living. The ones that keep you going when things feel tough. When you don’t know what you do.

And I came across this at a swimming lesson.

I was sick as a child, and that made me allergic to the water in British swimming pools. They overloaded the chlorine so much that even walking past a swimming pool building made me feel nauseated. And when the door opened for someone to go in—BAM! It felt like being hit with a wall of chlorine.

So I never learnt to swim.

Now I’m 30, I’m getting lessons (and very happy to say the Australian pools use less chlorine, and my skin is better so it doesn’t react so much).

Why does this relate to my new principle for life?

Well, in the few minutes at the end of the lesson, I had a quick chat with the other lady having lessons that day. She seemed to be doing so well to me, and I asked about the sports watch she was wearing. Turns out, though she was fairly new to swimming, she’d decided she was going to go all out and train to complete a triathlon.

I was amazed!

‘So you can already run and cycle?’

‘Not yet. But I’m also trying that.’

This year she had just decided she was going to start her fitness journey, learn to swim, and why not while she was at it give herself a big goal to motivate her?

A triathlon.

‘I just realised there are no limits on me, so why not do it? I can do whatever I want to try, really. If I’m going to learn how to swim, why not try for a triathlon?’

🤯

Why indeed.

A momentary meeting with a soulmate.

(The real kind, not the Hallmark movie romantic kind, but the people we meet every day—even just fleetingly—who provide sparks of ‘Oh, I was meant to meet you.’)

Because it’s true.

There are no limits on us. Save the ones we put on ourselves.

Sometimes we end up in environments that hold us down. Sometimes monetary situations, people, roles. But that’s not forever. It’s a period. And though no one ever knows how long that period might be, thinking about your limits and where you want to go can help you through whatever you’re struggling with.

So you can’t swim—YET. Who says you can’t learn and complete a triathlon? You may as well go all out if you’re learning. (If you want, you might not want to, and that’s okay.)

You might want to start writing. Why put a limit on it? One book? Rather, just say you want to write as much as you can. No limits. You might end up writing several.

Now, it’s that time of year we all reflect on how our year has been so far, or our whole life, and think about goals for next year. I started doing this a little, but found no specific goals came to mind.

Of course I want to keep drafting and publishing as many books as I can. Of course I want to continue in my goals towards financial freedom. Of course I want to keep growing towards a life of good health and vitality and fitness. Of course I want to continue growing as a good parent.

But nothing really sat with me as ‘I WANT TO DO X’.

And I realised it was because I was still reflecting on this limits thing.

There are no limits on me.

I can do whatever I want (really, within reason, of course).

I don’t know what this year will bring, but I know I’ll keep working towards all of my goals. But a lot can happen in a year, and for that reason, instead, I’ve decided to take things as they come, and look forward to exponential growth.

1 thing a day towards my goals is 365 things done in a year. That’s a lot.

Focusing on small daily habits helps you grow as a person incredibly. Exponentially. How can you plan for that? Except to take it day by day and enjoy it.

Perhaps now is the time we don’t think of goals, but instead think about the consistency we want to bring to 2025.

What are our life values?

Family? Fitness? Writing? Creativity? Learning? Language? Communication? The list goes on, but pick three.

Now look in your daily schedule and plan in even just 15 mins a day of each of those. Calendar it in. Make it a date for yourself. A must do. As much as possible.

From there, I like to track each day whether I do it. I love watching the little xs line up as I cross it off as complete each day.

Do I get around to doing it each and every day?

No. Life happens.

But I love watching it grow as much as it can. 4x a week. 5x a week. Sometimes 6x a week!

More than if I never put it in my calendar and hoped I remembered.

There are no limits on me. And that’s exciting. And it makes me want to do as much as I can towards my goals and dreams, because I’m so curious where it will end up.

Look again in 6 months.

1 year.

2 years.

Imagine where it can be in 5 years if you do a little bit every day.

The world will try to impose limits on you. But what if you chose to see those limits as temporary, and your potential as boundless?

Start small. Stay curious. And watch where you end up—because with no limits, the possibilities are endless. And the future is so exciting.

(And I WILL complete more book drafting this year! For those who are waiting for Dynasty Codes 3: Noble Blood and the next Haru & Yuka adventure, thank you so much for your patience! 🙏)

How about you? What are your values for 2025? What daily habits will help you bring them to life? Got any exciting creative projects in the works or that you’d like to begin?

The Hidden Side of Being an Author: Beyond the Writing Desk

When people think about being an author, they often imagine a cosy and glamorous life filled with soft lighting, inspiration, coffee cups, and hours spent typing away at a rustic desk. But the truth is, my desk isn't nearly as Instagram-worthy as people might hope, and the life of an author is a lot more complicated—and a lot more admin work—than that.

Let me walk you through the week I just had (because let’s face it, a typical day doesn’t exist in the author world), so you can see the weird mix of things an author might get up to when I'm not trying to finish writing The Dynasty Codes series for you or working on the new fantasy stand alones.

The errands of author life: not just writing

The truth is, being an author today means juggling many hats. Yes, there are creative bursts where I’m fully immersed in writing, but there are also days filled with organising, emailing, and a lot of running errands. Here’s just a glimpse of what this week alone looked like:

• Gazebo hunting: Spent some time scrolling through Facebook Marketplace looking for a gazebo (fun news coming soon on that!).

• Tested and bought the gazebo: Met the seller in person and made the purchase. I am now the proud owner of my very first pop-up gazebo!

• Bunnings adventure: I walked to the local Bunnings to pick up a 13 kg folding table, only to realise after paying I had to carry it back uphill in 35°C heat. (I’ll admit, there were plenty of breaks and some serious sweat involved, but hey, I counted it as my daily workout!) Yes, I should have realised before I went down there, and yes, I could have asked to keep it there while I went to get my car and drive back. But I'm too stubborn, and the weight seemed manageable. It was just the awkward carry shape that was the trouble!

The paperwork and admin Mount Dooms

Okay, that's dramatic, but sometimes it does feel like that scene at the end where Frodo crashes on the mountain with the lava flowing everywhere. Alongside the more physical tasks, there’s the endless paperwork. Finances, stock management, and planning—oh my! It’s easy to forget that all these behind-the-scenes tasks are essential to running an author business. Because that's what it is. A business. And I know that's not what some people glamorising being an author want to believe.

• Finances update: I took some time to update my author finances. Seeing the numbers track toward ROI is always satisfying—until I had to pay for another print run of Origin Curse and watched my ROI dip. But that’s part of the game! Stock is necessary, even if it means dipping further into the red for a little while. (I admit I'm a bit of a nerd about finances and love my spreadsheet set up.)

• Print run arrival: The latest batch of Origin Curse books arrived, and of course, I had to remember to take a reel of the unboxing for social media (I'll get better at this, I swear!). It’s not my favourite thing to do, but I know it’s part of the marketing effort. This is where I get stubborn and wish I COULD just sit and write. I never know what to say on socials. I have so many ideas when it comes to writing books, but then when it comes to writing something for social media ... crickets.

• Stock updates: And, speaking of stock, I communicated with a local bookstore that had run out of my books. So, this week, I’m heading to the post office to deliver a fresh batch just in time for the Christmas rush.

The ‘business’ of being an author

More on that bit above. If you’re an aspiring author, one thing I wish I’d known early on is that writing is only part of the job. The rest is business—serious, hands-on business. As an author, you're not just a creator; you're also the CEO, marketer, and operations manager of your own small business. It's taken a lot of time for me to get into that groove, and I'm still trying to get better at it. It's a life-long thing. [Insert random cliche about marathons-not-sprints that we all gag at now.]

Anyway, here's a quick run-down of things you are expected to do now as an author:

• You have to manage your own promotions, marketing, events, stock, and distribution. Everything, really. Yes, even when you go trade.

• You have to work with designers, editors, and printing companies, all while adhering to their unique specs and timelines. So I recommend you start developing project management and briefing skills and how to communicate effectively in the publishing industry and the specs and details people need. Everyone has their own processes, so ask clear questions before agreeing to work with people. Find what process works well for you.

• And, perhaps most importantly, you need to budget your time. Which leads me to the big question:

Time management: writing vs everything else

The hardest part? Managing your time.

Writing is our sacred task. The big we all enjoy. And while we all wish for it to be the only thing we have to do, there’s so much more. One thing I’ve learned is that when I schedule time for writing, I sometimes have to treat it as 'Author Time', where if something busy and admin-y comes up, now and then I have to allow myself to swap writing for all the other tasks that go into being a business owner.

Can I squeeze everything into other times during the day? That would be the dream. But with work, family commitments, and a million other things, that kind of uninterrupted writing time is often hard to come by. We all struggle with finding enough hours in the day, so every moment of 'Author Time' counts.

Though, of course, one day the dream is to make this a full time gig.

Until then ... writing as much as I can and squeezing other things in is the reality.

All the many hats and juggling balls of being a modern author

Being an author isn't just about writing a book anymore. It’s about managing your business, balancing your time, and dealing with tasks that range from fun (like designing marketing collateral with your partner in book crime [shout out to Donika here for doing this with me this week!] to exhausting (hello, lugging large items up-hill).

And for anyone considering becoming an author, remember: writing is just the beginning. It’s a journey filled with paperwork, logistics, and a lot of emails. But it’s also a journey that’s incredibly fun and rewarding. Especially when you hear the incredible experiences of readers contacting you about how much they loved your books.

For the published writers out there: How do you manage all the responsibilities that come with being a writer? Are you balancing your writing time with the ‘business’ side? Let me know in the comments!

For the want-to-be writers out there: keep it up, and know that it's still a great thing to do. Find your best schedule, and do as little or as much as you can and want to. Everyone has their own race and own pace. Let me know if you have any questions about handling author life amongst life, school, work, children, study, everything ...

P.S. If you’re struggling with author finances, I’ve created a template to track everything from royalties to print runs. Feel free to reach out if you’d like a copy!

Fantasy Books Can Change The World

I truly believe fantasy books can change the world.

With strong plots, themes, worldbuilding …

Character arcs that feel like such real people to us that we relate to them and feel inspired by them …

Ideas you don’t get anywhere else that just 🤯🤩

The way you can impact a reader through fantasy stories might just be what gives them the drive and inspiration to take action and go down a certain path that will make a great difference to the world.

Fantasy is a true magic.

And if you're not a fantasy reader yet, you should be, because it'll offer you perspectives and opportunities you can't meet in the real world. Experiences and views you can't meet anywhere else.

If you need a book to start with, try mine 😉

Available at your favourite online and eBook retailer, but here's the Amazon link for a few sneak peeks.

Origin Curse (book 1)

Dark Tides (book 2)