No Lie! I actually opened a book shop ... well, sort of!
Sometimes you just have to slap on your big girl pants and do it, right? Well, I did it - I opened my very own (virtual) gift shop!
I know, some of you are going to be wondering what on earth I was thinking. After all, I am a mum, I work full-time, I am a successfully published author... why on this sweet, green planet would I want MORE work on my hands?! Ok, well, all of that's true and realistically, I wish there were more hours in the day. But, there are actually several REALLY GOOD reasons why EVERY author should have their own gift shops.
You see, besides the A-listers among us (hello? anyone?), most people get into the writing gig because they do actually believe that they're going to make it and they might - eventually. The writing gig is HARD! I've done my research. I know that if you rely on Amazon or Wholesale, the likelihood of you being able to finally, exit the rat race of corporate employment is LESS than 10%. My son is currently 7. I know I have missed precious moments because of the daily grind. I don't want to bring up my son thinking that it's ok to exchange the hours of your life doing something that makes you wish for clock-off, for a paycheck. Money get's spent, its fleeting. Life isn't.
And as we are on the subject of the future generations of readers, writers, and reviewers out there, I'm going to drop the eco bomb.
Let's be honest, since the turn of the century, humans have done a bloody awful job of looking after this planet. We really have royally screwed things up! I don't want to turn around to my son and say that I stood by. I'm not an eco-warrior, you wont see me gluing myself to oil trucks. But, I do believe that if everyone did a little, a lot would happen. My vision for Thistle and Bard, is a shop that believes you shouldn't need to leave your morals at the door AND it doesn't need to be expensive OR ugly - and yes, I do think all of that Kraft brown is ugly!
STOP! Can I pause you for a minute? If you're enjoying this or any of the other blog posts, don't forget to hammer that LIKE button and let a friend know. You can also get EXTRA perks by joining the newsletter, why not do it now before you forget...
Do I know how the end of this adventure will go? Absolutely, not! But, I am extremely excited to find out and I hope that you will join me as I take control of my destiny and forge a better path for my work-life balance, for my son's future, and to give my ten pence (or cents if your European or American) to repairing our world.
Don't worry, I don't intend to stop writing. I haven't gone head-first into this and forgotten my true love for writing fiction - my next blog will be back on books again, I promise.
HAPPY EASTER!
