If We Were Having Coffee (Plus, Read The First Chapter of Political Capital!)

It’s been a minute, hasn’t it? Feels like a perfect time for a “If we were having coffee” post where I catch you up on what’s been going on in my life and listen to what’s new with you, just like I would if we were having coffee at a favorite cafe. So grab a beverage, get comfy, and let’s yap, shall we?

Knoxville Book Festival. I spent the weekend at the Knoxville Book Festival. It was my first true book festival, and I had an absolute blast. I met so many readers and fellow authors, sold some books, and learned a lot. I was also on my first panel! I chatted all things romantasy and romance with E.L. Canney and Sherrilyn Kenyon. Y’all, I fear I love being on panels. Other than meeting readers, it was my favorite part of the festival. I’m looking forward to doing it all again at the Summer Book Fest in June.  

I’m Just Sarah Wyland, Now. I sunsetted my @sarahwylandwrites Instagram account a couple of months ago. I started the account in 2022 while I was working on my MFA in writing and producing for television. Back then, people knew I wrote, but they didn’t know I was a writer, if that makes sense. I was living two lives – “Sarah” and “Sarah the Writer.” I wouldn’t go as far as to say I was embarrassed for people to know I was writing romance novels and TV pilots, but I was definitely hesitant to share out of fear of judgment from those who knew me. I overcame that fear when I released my debut, Off The Record. I took a deep breath, posted it on my personal social media accounts, and I’ve been talking about my writing without embarrassment ever since. 

I’d been thinking about combining my writing account with my personal account for a while, and after taking a social media break, decided it was time. I’ve officially been @SarahWyland and only @SarahWyland for about six weeks now. It’s great not to live a “double life” and to have one less account to manage. 

Speaking of that break… Some of you noticed I went quiet on social media for several weeks earlier this year. I also haven’t posted a blog or sent a newsletter in a while. In truth, my mental health took a nosedive after I released Political Gain. The overwhelming response was positive, but a couple of people managed to bring me to my knees. At one point, I was ready to pull all of my writing, delete all of my social media, and give up the dream. Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed, and slowly but surely. I’m finding the confidence to share my work again.  

While I’m not going to get into the specifics, I will say this: it is never okay to deliberately set out to tear someone down. We live in an age where screens and keyboards make us bold and give us the courage to say and do things we absolutely would not do face-to-face, or even on our own screen names. Actions have consequences, and the adage is wrong: sticks and stones do break bones, but words absolutely hurt. I’m fortunate that I had family and friends to prop me up and encourage me. Not everyone does. And besides, as women, don’t we have it hard enough without tearing into one another? There’s enough bad in this world. Let’s not intentionally add to it. 

I have a team now. Off The Record was released entirely solo. I had no editor, no cover designer, no assistant. Just me, googling every step of the way. When I released Strictly Business, I hired a recently laid-off copywriter friend to do copy edits for me. Before the holidays and ahead of Political Gain, I hired a few people “smarter than me” to do the things I didn’t know how to do, or at least do well. 

Up first, I hired an editor. Cait has been a godsend, doing both line and copy edits for the first three Political Gain books. She’ll likely do books four and five as well. I just have to, you know, write them. 

In addition to writing, I do a lot of freelance work, and that side hustle has grown exponentially in the last year. I hired a CPA to do all the money stuff. Do you know how nice it was not to do my own taxes this year? He tells me to stop buying needlepoint supplies and books on a semi-weekly basis, but for the first time in my adult life, I know exactly where my money is going, where I’m investing, and what my business health looks like. And did I mention I didn’t have to do my own taxes? 

And finally, I hired a lawyer to help me with all the legal stuff. He guided me through the LLC process, created contracts for my freelance work, and reviewed all my books, both published and in the works, for copyright and IP. He’s made sure I have all the right language in all the right places, answered all of my excessive questions about everything from tattooed MMCs to non-competes, and, truthfully, was a big reason I didn’t quit writing. He charges me absolute pennies for what he does, and I adore him. 

Paying an editor, a CPA, and a lawyer isn’t the cheapest endeavor, and if it weren’t for all that freelance work, I wouldn’t be able to, as my CPA likes to point out, I’m definitely in the red for self-publishing so far, but the peace of mind has been worth every penny. 

Needlepointing Is My Entire Personality. I bought my first canvas (this imperfectly stitched Dolly one!) back in the fall, thinking I’d give it a try and see how I liked it. Turns out, I love it. The repetitive nature of stitching has been really good for my anxiety, and I love watching my projects come together. I can confirm that buying and stitching canvases are two different hobbies, and I am very into both. Hence why my CPA keeps telling me to stop buying canvases. My next endeavor is to take on self-finishing an ornament and a bag charm. Stay tuned. 

Fanfic No More. I’ll mention this since I’ve gotten more than a few DMs about it. A few weeks ago, I quietly removed all of my fanfiction from AO3. Political Gain was removed on publication day for obvious reasons, but I ultimately made the decision to take down everything else as, frankly, the fanfiction world was proving to be not a great place for my mental health. Don’t get me wrong. 98% of the people I’ve met through fanfiction, including many of you, have been wonderful. I even count a few of you as real-life friends now, and I am so very grateful for you. That other 2%? Well, see above. Putting work out into the world as an author is hard enough, and my mental health is important. And you know what? I don’t mind having one less space to maintain online. 

Political Capital. Political Capital, book two in the Political Gain series, is with my editor for copy edits. I’ll do one last pass of it when she returns it, and then… it’ll be out to the masses! 

Real talk? 

I’m terrified to release this book after my experience with Political Gain. I’m nervous about every book, but this time, it’s visceral. I’ve been holding it tight to my chest out of fear, teasing it the tiniest of bits here and there, but it’s time to rip off the metaphorical bandage and trust that it will find its readers. I said in the back of Political Gain that it was coming “Spring 2026,” and I’m sticking to that (barely). I’ll share the release date soon (June!), but for now, would you like to read the first chapter? Check it out right here.

That’s enough about me. Tell me about you. What have you been up to? What new life updates do you have? Leave a comment or send me a DM and let me know what you’d tell me if we were having coffee!