There are books that arrive at the perfect moment.
And then there are books that feel as though they were written specifically for the questions you’ve been quietly carrying—the stories you’re ready to outgrow, and the version of yourself you’re still becoming.
Stacey Lindsay’s Being 40: The Decade of Letting Go—and Embracing Who We Are is that kind of book.
I first met Stacey as a colleague. She was the design editor at Camille Styles, and I had the privilege of working alongside her. I use that word intentionally because editing Stacey’s work never felt like simply editing. Her perspective was always thoughtful, honest, and deeply considered. More often than not, I found myself learning from her.
That hasn’t changed.
Her first book, Being 40, is a reflection of exactly who Stacey is: warm, insightful, deeply human, and unafraid to question the narratives we’ve inherited.
Through conversations with experts, personal stories from women navigating their 40s, and her own vulnerable reflections, Stacey challenges the outdated idea that turning 40 represents a decline.
Instead, she offers something far more powerful:
A new beginning.
Why Stacey Lindsay Wrote Being 40
When Stacey entered her 40s, she experienced what many women quietly experience but rarely discuss.
A complicated mix of emotions.
Excitement.
Uncertainty.
Grief.
Curiosity.
Hope.
Restlessness.
She describes it as:
“A kaleidoscope of feelings—excitement, yearning, rage, confusion, awe, sadness, eagerness, surprise, elation, grief.”
There was also a familiar feeling many women recognize: the sense that she was somehow behind.
Behind the invisible timeline society had created.
Behind expectations about where a woman “should” be by this age.
But instead of accepting those stories, Stacey began questioning them.
She started asking other women about their experiences turning 40.
And what she discovered surprised her.
“Whoa, I am not alone.”
The decade she initially thought was defined by uncertainty was actually filled with transformation, reinvention, and self-discovery.
The more women she spoke with, the clearer it became:
The story of being 40 needed to be rewritten.
The Reality of Creating Something Meaningful
Writing a book is often romanticized as a burst of inspiration followed by effortless creativity.
Stacey offers a more honest version.
Creating Being 40 required patience, consistency, and the willingness to believe her own work mattered.
“Staying with this book took a daily practice of letting go of the story that I wasn’t worthy to write it,” she shares.
That process meant learning to recognize her inner critic without allowing it to make decisions for her.
For Stacey, creating required structure:
- Giving the book her first attention in the morning
- Writing before distractions took over
- Returning to the work consistently
- Accepting that creativity looks different every day
Some days meant writing new chapters.
Some meant editing.
Some meant simply sitting with an idea until it became clearer.
All of it was part of the process.
She challenges the idea that creativity always looks productive.
Sometimes creativity is movement.
Sometimes it is reflection.
Sometimes it is simply staying connected to the thing you care about.
The Courage to Tell the Truth
One of the hardest parts of writing Being 40 was allowing herself to be fully seen.
Sharing personal experiences meant confronting uncomfortable questions:
Would people judge me?
Would this feel too vulnerable?
Would people understand?
Stacey had to move beyond the fear that honesty would be interpreted as weakness.
Instead, she discovered something much more meaningful:
Honesty creates connection.
“I hope that in moving beyond any hiding and leaning into depth and truth, it will encourage another woman to know she’s never alone in her personal messiness and questions,” she says.
That idea sits at the center of the book.
Not perfection.
Not having everything figured out.
Connection.
The reminder that whatever you are navigating, someone else has likely been there too.
The Truth About Turning 40
For generations, women have been given a limited story about aging.
Turning 40 was often described as a loss.
A closing door.
The beginning of becoming less visible.
But Stacey believes the opposite is true.
“Turning 40 and being in this decade is a time of massive self-evolution, clarity, and radical self-knowing,” she says.
The reality of women’s lives today is far more diverse than traditional narratives suggest.
Women in their 40s are:
- Starting new careers
- Ending relationships that no longer serve them
- Beginning relationships later in life
- Becoming mothers later—or choosing not to become mothers
- Exploring new identities
- Rebuilding after major life changes
There is no single version of what 40 looks like.
And that freedom is exactly the point.
Finding Your Inner Autumn Queen
One of Stacey’s favorite concepts in the book is the idea of the Autumn Queen.
Inspired by women’s coach Steph Jagger, the Autumn Queen represents the energy of a woman fully stepping into herself.
She is:
- Confident
- Curious
- Grounded
- Unafraid of change
- Comfortable taking up space
“She is there, fully confident, in all of us,” Stacey says.
The Autumn Queen doesn’t ask for permission.
She doesn’t apologize for evolving.
She trusts herself.
And perhaps most importantly, she knows that becoming yourself is not something that happens once.
It is something you continue doing throughout your life.
You Are Never Too Late
Perhaps the most powerful message in Being 40 is this:
You are never too late.
Stacey explains:
“We can be late for dinner reservations, but not the creative force in our lives.”
The belief that we have missed our moment is often a story we inherited—not a truth.
There is no expiration date on creativity.
No deadline for reinvention.
No age limit on beginning again.
“You are never too late to explore a yearning inside you,” Stacey says.
And while letting go of false timelines is important, she also encourages women to embrace urgency in another way.
Not urgency created by fear.
Urgency created by desire.
The desire to live fully.
To follow what matters.
To finally say yes to yourself.
Being 40 Is Only the Beginning
Being 40 is more than a book about one decade of life.
It is an invitation.
An invitation to question the stories we have inherited.
To release expectations that no longer belong to us.
To trust the quiet desires that keep returning.
Stacey Lindsay’s greatest gift is her willingness to go first—to share the uncertainty, the questions, and the messy middle so other women feel less alone.
Having worked alongside Stacey, I can say this book feels exactly like her:
Thoughtful.
Honest.
Warm.
Brave.
It doesn’t promise to give you every answer.
Instead, it asks better questions.
And sometimes, that is exactly where transformation begins.
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Discover why turning 40 can be a powerful new beginning. Stacey Lindsay shares how women can embrace self-growth, creativity, confidence, and reinvention in midlife.
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