The best thing I ever did as an aspiring writer was to stop worrying about being published. Life is about more than these accomplishments. There was a time I was like her, but I had an epiphany a few months back that even if I were published, it wouldn't change my life that much. For one, novels don't sell well. Your daughter's accomplishment is huge, not taking that away, but this doesn't mean she'll become a full time writer. It's extremely hard to make a writer as a career now or at least one where you're barely above the poverty line.

I feel like your sister views this as some kind of goal that will change her life. It won't. What she should focus on is that she enjoys writing and that it gives her life meaning. Not the accolades.

The first thing any writer needs to do is let go of this need for outside validation. Hard as that is. And I say this as a writer who currently has agents looking at my MS. Yes, getting published would be neat, but I doubt it will make me happy, at least not for any significant amount of time.

I'm kind of rambling. So I'll stop.

Don't remind her of being published. Self-publishing is as easy as clicking a few buttons. That's salting the wound.

And don't cut her out! Jesus. God forbid a writer ever be temperamental! Who ever heard of such a thing!?