This regular post from the Alliance of Independent Authors celebrates ALLi member successes to inspire our indie author community. Our ALLi Member Milestones for March 2025 celebrate the successes of author members Ali Steed, Jeff Probst, Helena Trooperman, Sara Sartagne, Elizabeth A. Estabrooks, Debbie Emmitt, and Nancy Stanfield Webb. Congratulations to all those featured in this month’s roundup and to everyone in our community who has hit a milestone!
Do you have a member milestone to share?
We are always looking to hear from our members about your achievements, from those of you who are just setting out to our most experienced Authorpreneurs. Whatever your achievement, if you are a member of ALLi, please tell us about your success stories using this form. We will share a selection each month with our members and our wider indie author network.
Ali Steed
Ali Steed
Ali Steed is a multi-award-winning national journalist and now author writing crime fiction. She lives in Mallorca, Spain, and is loving life! She plans on a few writing retreats here. You can find her on Instagram.
Member Milestone
My debut novel won the 2024 Best Indie Book Award in the Thriller/Suspense category. I am so proud to have achieved this so early in my author career. I am working on book two now!
What have you learned?
Believe in yourself and your abilities more readily. I found it very hard to release my first novel to the world, despite being a journalist for many years. It feels different because novels are more personal. But I overcame this, and now I look forward to building on this success.
Jeff Probst
Jeff Probst
Jeff Probst was born in the United States in the first half of the 20th century. He moved to Johannesburg in 1983 and has lived in London since 1990. He is the author of When the Moon Was White, Bachelor Butterflies, and Teaching Shakespeare to Hairdressers: An American Teacher in London. You can find him on Instagram.
Member Milestone
My novel, When the Moon Was White, was added to the exhibition The Library of Unread Books at the Serpentine in London last autumn. People can take books from the library if they want, as it is “a collection of books the owners haven’t read and have donated for someone else to read.” The library travels around the world, and my book likes to travel too—maybe one day, even to the moon.
What have you learned?
Helena Trooperman
Helena Trooperman
Helena Trooperman writes optimistic near-future sci-fi, introducing readers to ordinary characters who discover their fantastic and embrace it. You can find her on Instagram, Bluesky, and Facebook.
Member Milestone
Threshold in Tech Array [AOU,02,03] has gone viral on the Reedsy Discovery platform. My five-star editorial review went live in the last week of January and received 32 upvotes, which was enough to get my novella into the Discovery newsletter and in front of many more potential readers. It took me two months to work up the courage to submit, but I’m glad I did. More than a week later, I now have 47 upvotes—and counting. On top of that, I have 11 reader reviews for social media and my website, along with an amazing editorial review.
What have you learned?
Sara Sartagne
Sara Sartagne
Based near York, England, Sara Sartagne writes women's fiction and dual-timeline historical fiction. You can find her on Threads, Mastodon, Instagram, and Facebook.
Member Milestone
I received a positive review from the Historical Novel Association—my first ever! I'm starting to feel legitimate as a writer.
What have you learned?
Believe.
Elizabeth A. Estabrooks
Elizabeth A. Estabrooks
Elizabeth Estabrooks chose to retire after spending most of her career advocating for survivors of interpersonal violence. Her expertise in the field shaped her life and inspired her first book, which can be found on her website. You can also find her on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Medium.
Member Milestone
I completed my book! It has gone through the editing process and is now ready for formatting. It will be released on March 18, 2025. This memoir was incredibly difficult to write. At one point, family drama surrounding the book caused me to stop writing for six months, and I struggled to pick it back up. Then one day, a friend said, “Girl, you need to finish that damn book.” That was all I needed to get back to it. Four months later, it was done.
What have you learned?
Debbie Emmitt
Debbie Emmitt
Debbie Emmitt is an editor, proofreader, and author currently working on her first novel. She specializes in editing books set in France, as well as mysteries and historical fiction. She has also written books to help authors and editors with their websites. You can find her on LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.
Member Milestone
I've just published the first book in my Tricky Quickies series! Over 200 easily confused English words and phrases—concisely explained with examples. Since 2022, I've been posting one Tricky Quickie a week on social media and always dreamed of compiling them into a series of books. I'm delighted to offer the first 100 Quickies in paperback and eBook format for people to peruse at their leisure. Book two is already in the pipeline, and due to so many requests, I'm now posting two Quickies a week!
What have you learned?
Nancy Stanfield Webb
Nancy Stanfield Webb
Nancy Stanfield Webb is a writer, painter, and photographer who has spent three decades researching and writing the two-part biographical/historical novel series A Woman of Marked Character – The Imagined Portrait of Sarah Ridge Paschal Pix 1812–1891. A great-granddaughter of Texas pioneers, Webb now lives in Rhode Island and concludes the series with Book Two: 1848–1891. You can find her on Facebook, Instagram, and at nancywebbwriter.com.
Member Milestone
Over the past year, I published two historical novels—one last November and the other this April. After writing the final version from 2017 to 2024, I had beta readers review the manuscripts, followed by a professional editor. I also designed the concept for both covers, aiming to simulate 1800s leather-bound books, and had them professionally created. With the help of an expert book designer, I crafted an interior that includes flourishes, dropped caps, and running chapter heads. The books, printed and distributed by BookBaby, are 406 and 448 pages, respectively. In January 1991, I stood beside my main character’s grave near Galveston Bay in Texas. I first heard about this Cherokee woman at a historical society meeting—a pioneer rancher with an intriguing past. As a freelance writer, I was curious, and over the past 30-plus years, I have made it my mission to tell Sarah Ridge’s story. I’m proud of my determination and tenacity.
What have you learned?
Not yet an ALLi member?
The Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) is a global membership association for self-publishing authors. A non-profit, our mission is ethics and excellence in self-publishing.
Everyone on our team is a working indie author and we offer advice and advocacy for self-publishing authors within the literary, publishing, and creative industries around the world. All the membership options and benefits, including free access to our collection of self-publishing advice ebooks, are on our website. Take a look and join us today.
Thoughts or further questions on this post or any self-publishing issue?
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Non-members looking for more information can search our extensive archive of blog posts and podcast episodes packed with tips and advice at ALLi's Self-Publishing Advice Center.
