We haven’t even gotten to Christmas yet and I’m already thinking ahead to the coming year. I’d really like to come out of the gate running, but I know I’ll have to pace myself if I want to win the race. I know how corny that sounds, but it makes perfect sense to me.
I’ve come a long way in the past year, both privately and professionally. However, due to some unforeseen incidents, my financial burdens have grown a bit. Nope, not asking for handouts or starting a gofundme page. I’m just working on ways I can increase my income (the correct way) and keep my head above water.
One of the things I’m going to focus on is my writing. Some of you may know that I’ve been writing for a company called Medium.com for some time now. It used to be a nice source of a little extra income, but not lately. They’re revamping the site and it’s not for the better. At least not right now. I used to make an extra $20 to $50 a month. Now, I’m lucky if I hit the $10 payout. It’s just not fun anymore. I’ll still write there occasionally, but not nearly as much as I used to.
I’ve been writing more on my blogs Priestess of Words and Collected Keepsakes, as well as this one. I want to get back to doing what I always loved doing; just writing. Getting the words out of my head and out into the open. If people read it, cool. If not, on to the next.
I’m also going to be focusing more on my creative endeavors. I’ve been making a lot of handmade Christmas gift tags, but rather than selling them in my shop, I’ve been giving them away. Hey, it’s Christmas and it makes people happy.
However, after the first of the year, I’m going to focus on getting both of my online stores a little more noticed. I’ve been having a ball creating AI images for my Redbubble shop, Pathways through the Past. I started out just uploading images I’d created through either NightCafe Studio or Leonardo AI. Now, I’ve added elements from Canva Pro and have created some really cool images with quotes/sayings. That’s been fun.
At my Bonanza.com shop, Prairied Treasures, I’ll start adding new items once Christmas is over. Why haven’t I added my stuff to sell for Christmas? Because I knew I wasn’t ready for that kind of commitment over the holidays. Once Christmas is over, I can focus on myself as much as the shop. I don’t want to disappoint a potential customer so I need to be on top of my game.
I think I’m going to shut down my Etsy shop. It’s not worth the money it costs me to keep my stuff listed. I’ll move the listings for my gift tags to the Bonanza shop, but because they don’t like to sell digital items, I’m thinking of trying to sell my digital items through Gumroad. I’ve had an account for some time, but haven’t done much with it. Maybe I’ll go that route.
I’ll also get back to work on my 30-minute read series, Investigating the Beyond. I have most of book 2 finished, I just need to do a quick edit and make sure it’s read-ready. I’m also working on putting together a longer novella called The Pin-Up Girls Murders and one called A Life in Ruins. They are both in rough draft form at the moment and will need a good cleaning before they’re ready to go live.
I also have about 3 other novellas in the works. None of them are finished and are going to need a lot of work. But that’s my goal for the coming year. Get them to the point where I can hand them off to an editor and maybe get them out by this time next year. At least one of them, anyway.
I refuse to just sit back and worry about rising costs and expenses. I have to do something to keep myself going and make ends meet. I can’t be afraid, I just have to be willing to do the work. I know I have it in me, I just need to make it happen. I don’t expect to come out of this a kabillionaire, I just want to be able to pay my bills and still have a little something left over.
Here’s to the coming year and what it has in store. Thank you for stopping by and hanging out. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season.
Until next time,
Merry Christmas.
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