Melinda French Gates Announces New Book About Change: 'Over the Last Few Years, I’ve Experienced a Lot’ (Exclusive)

French Gates wrote 'The Next Day: Transitions, Change, and Moving Forward' following her split from Bill Gates and exit from the Gates Foundation

Melinda French Gates is opening up about her life like never before.

On Monday, Sept. 30, Flatiron Books announced exclusively with PEOPLE that French Gates, 60, is set to release a new book titled The Next Day: Transitions, Change, and Moving Forward. According to a press release, the book serves as a "rare window into some of her life’s pivotal moments."

According to French Gates, the "painful" and "exciting" changes she's experienced over the last several years of her life inspired her to take on this project.

"Over the last few years, I’ve experienced a lot of change — some of it exciting, some of it painful — so I’ve done a lot of thinking and learning about transitions," the Pivotal Ventures founder says in a statement shared exclusively with PEOPLE. "I decided to start writing this while I was still in the middle of this season of change, rather than safely on the other side."

This isn't French Gates' first published work — in 2019, her book The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World became a bestseller and she subsequently founded Moment of Lift Books, which publishes nonfiction books that empower women and girls.

In The Next Day, she defines "transitions" as "moments in which we step out of our familiar surroundings and into a new landscape — a space that, for many people, is shadowed by confusion, fear and indecision."

"We've all had days that change our lives forever," the philanthropist continues. "This book is about what we do the next day, when one phase of our life has come to an end, but the next phase hasn't quite yet begun. I've learned that if you can find the courage to linger in that liminal space, it has a lot to teach you."

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For French Gates, the book also served as a chance to reflect on the "major transition points" in her life, including becoming a mom to three children, attending college and even leaving her post at the Gates Foundation.

"I write a lot about the people and ideas that have been helpful to me during moments of uncertainty, and the process of revisiting all that wisdom I’ve relied on has made me appreciate it even more," she said.

Related: Melinda French Gates Feeling ‘Complicated Mix of Emotions’ on Last Day at Gates Foundation

The Pivotal Ventures founder adds that she hopesThe Next Day inspires readers as they navigate their own transitional periods in life, and take solace in her own, similar experiences.

“You don’t get to be my age without navigating all kinds of transitions," French Gates continues. "Some you embraced and some you never expected. Some you hoped for and some you fought as hard as you could."

"Change is universal. It’s something everyone experiences," she adds. "And yet, when you’re in the middle of a life change, especially one you didn’t ask for, it can also feel really lonely. I certainly don’t have all the answers in my book, but my hope is that by sharing some of the things that have helped me in my life, there will be something in there that’s useful to others who are navigating transitions of their own."

The Next Day: Transitions, Change, and Moving Forward is set to be released on April 15, 2025 through Flatiron Books, an imprint of Macmillan Publishers.

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