Outside the comfort zone

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Outside the comfort zone

Self-promotion, marketing, advertising, asking people to purchase, convincing them to part with their hard-earned money is a skill set I'm not familiar with and most definitely out of my comfort zone. Apparently, this is not uncommon for writers, artists, or any creative professional. We just want to create a thing, right? A beautiful thing that should sell itself. Organically. Magically. Effortlessly. 

But as Dan Blank discusses in Be the Gateway, getting the thing into people's hands is as critical to the effort as it's creation. In other words, creation is only half the journey. His book also teaches me to minimize overwhelm and uncomfortableness by focusing on one connection at a time. Singular. Simple. Satisfying. 

Sure I have spreadsheets of tasks but ultimately recognizing how I get to promote inclusiveness, gladness, literacy, adventure, and travel makes this stage of publishing Hoofen Floofen Island fun again. 

In other words, shine a light on the message of the book rather than the book itself. That's a task I can get behind. 

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My Ancestral Home

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My Ancestral Home

Recently, reading Robin Botie's "Another Precious Summer," and her call to action questions at the end of the post triggered the following comment from me:

"This summer I'm returning to my ancestral home and my chosen hometown(s) from the 50+ years I lived in Wisconsin. Returning to my roots so I may start out again and again. Revisiting the haunts of my and my late daughter's, promoting the tender story she wrote, which is now an illustrated children's story. I will allow myself to stand on familiar and new coasts and declare I'm ready for whatever comes next."

A blessing and a promise. To myself. 

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Dealing with fear

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A man who flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a shortcut to meet it. --JRR Tolkien

The boomerang effect. Deal with it now or later. If later, the fear can become unbearably magnified. The fruits of dealing with my fear have included feelings of enrichment, fulfillment, being in a more evolved state of mind where more options bloom into reality. 

So what does the mean really? 

For me, recognizing the fact that for too many years I was living my life waiting for the other shoe to drop following my daughter's death, was slowly killing me, my dreams. Yes, it has been hard and painful work facing this reality. And time-consuming. And worth every minute of effort. It serves no one and does not honor my daughter if I'm not creating a life well lived. 

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