MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!

Be a writer, I thought.  

You like to write, I thought.  

You're pretty good at writing, I thought.  

Maybe all that's true.  The jury is still out, it seems.  I wrote a small book and published it; that was a beginning.  Then I started the process of publicizing my book.  I had no idea what I was in for. 

It's so incredibly hard to get noticed as a writer.  Everybody  wants to be a writer...or a painter...or a photographer.   I'm artistic!  we all say.  If only people would notice me!  we all say - Then I would be a success! 

Well, kiddies, it's not like that in the real world.  The Internet makes self-publishing easy; so easy, in fact that everyone who ever had a wild hair about doing it is now doing it.  Like me, for instance!


So...how do I get noticed for my writing?  How do I make a living from my writing when it's such a crowded marketplace?  


I don't know.  That's why I wrote this blog.  I'm frustrated, I guess.


While I continue to write, and publicize my works, I still need to pay my bills - right now.  People have been encouraging me to write, write, write to reach my goal.  Indeed I try.  But frankly it's too much.  Working a job, maintaining my home, dealing with my cats, fixing my car, and doing all this stuff alone, while suffering from poor health - it's too much.  I haven't given up on my dream of being a writer.  I've realized, however, that the bottom line is, I need money - right now.


Money to fix my health problems.  Money to fix my home and my car and my cats (that is, their health problems - not their sex organs!).  This is not a "love of money" issue.  This is about having enough cash to cover the basics of day-to-day living.  


So, I've had to make a decision.  I'll continue to work on my writing, but, it has to take a temporary back seat to my other needs.  I dream that one of these days things will change, and I'll be able to focus only on writing.  Until that happens, I must become Mr. Business Man.  


I'm learning all about creating an online business.  At this point I'm doing it alone, without any outside help or guidance.  Not that I would object to some help!  If help comes my way I'll embrace it.  Every day is another thing to learn, and another hurdle to overcome.  It's a new world for me, as is the world of writing.  However, while the public is still deciding if my writing is any good, I know with absolute certainty that those same people will want to buy "things" and I have the capability of supplying those things and making a tidy profit.  


Soon I'll have a website; a central, online home for me to show all the different items that make up my e-presence.  At this point I have my book that I'll be putting on the website;  I also have a novelty clock for sale, for which I designed an original face.  Coming soon will be a collection of silly gag gifts, and also (one of my favorites) T-shirts with my own original, funny ideas silk-screened on them. 


I really don't know where this business will go.  As with any business, I'll have to try different things, drop the things that don't sell, and promote the ones that do.  It's an exciting time for me, because I don't know what tomorrow holds.  


But you can be sure I'll be writing about it!