(I’ve been playing with making lots of graphics. Isn’t she pretty!?!?!)
I’ve taken a bit of time off lately to refresh and get my mind back in shape for Queen Takes Rook. Switching gears to The Treasurekeeper (Shamrocked) was a fun change of pace. But now it’s back to blood and steam and vampire war as I tackle Shara’s next book. I’m behind of where I wanted to be by now, but the time off was nice. I even got some pleasure reading done!
I took two of my kids to my dad’s farm over spring break last week. I intended to get allllll the words, but ended up resting (good), saw my sister (even better), and did something else shocking. I rode horses! When I was in high school, I rode ALL the time. But after getting married at 18 and going to college, I probably only rode 2 times in nearly thirty years. Now I really feel old.
When all 3 daughters go to the farm, Papa doesn’t have enough horses and saddles to go around for me to ride too, but since Middle stayed home to work (yes, she’s old enough to have a job now!), we had the available horse, and the saddle… and my girls begged me to ride with them. They took it easy on me and only rode the 4-mile loop…. hahaha yeah my entire lower body was miserable by the time we got home.
But it was sooo much fun that I rode again (the 4-mile loop backwards!) a few days later and wasn’t nearly as sore. It’s definitely something I want to do more of and I’m hoping to make lots of trips to the farm this summer.
I upgraded my laptop and finally splurged and got EXACTLY what I wanted: a new 15″ Macbook Pro! I’ve drooled over Macs forever but couldn’t justify the cost. But I want to format with Vellum (the Cadillac formatting software that only runs on a Mac) and I had the money, so I walked in and told the guy exactly what I wanted. No dillydallying or settling for something cheaper. It was very empowering. I rarely ever spend money on something for “me” even when it’s writing income, so I’m trying to change my mindset and make smart investments. This time it was also a smart splurge and I love it so much the girls keep telling me I love it more than them. Of course I don’t. (pets the new laptop)
Business wise, I’ve been playing with a lot of new techniques. I’ve started some AMS ads, fine tuned my mediocre Facebook ad knowledge, read some books, and signed up for some classes. I’d like to maybe open a store eventually and sell books direct, at least signed print ones, but the amount of work is daunting. It’s the sales tax that makes me hesitate the most. I am also interested in moving my website and newsletter to Wix, so I’ll be doing some research and testing out some possibilities.
This writing gig isn’t just stringing some words together and calling it good. At least not any more. I’m hoping that I can build my ad skills (especially AMS) and keep my income up in between releases, or at least somewhat steady, so I don’t kill myself trying to release every 30-45 days. That’s a brutal pace I really can’t keep with the Evil Day Job and everything else.
I’m far from an expert, but learning all the time.