Best Advice for Aspiring Authors:

Keep expectations reasonable about how long it takes to publish, advances and marketing, etc.
Make goals that are in your control (ie how many words you write a day, not when you will be published).
Network—which means basically, make friends in the business.
Keep sending things out.
Write something new—don’t wait around once you’ve finished something and sent it out.
Try lots of genres to see what fits best with your unique style.
Set creative challenges for yourself throughout your career. Write the thing you think you can’t write.
Don’t worry about social media.
Have a simple website with a bio and bibliography.
Write what you love, not what you think will sell
Celebrate as much as possible
Live life fully in the meantime.
Tell stories, don’t preach.