I first started writing this blog in December 2007 when, after a career as a technical writer, I decided to try my hand at a more creative style. More than 16 years and nearly 600 posts later, I’ve decided to call a halt, at least for the moment.
When I wrote that first post, December in Ljubljana, KDP was just a month old and Kindle Unlimited didn’t exist. Facebook had been around for three years, and Twitter for one. Instagram and Tiktok were years away from being invented. It was a very different world.
When my friend Sharon Cook and I published Life is Not a Trifling Affair in 2011, we held off bringing out the ebook for six months as we were worried it would cannibalise our sales of physical books. How things have changed.
Since those early days, I’ve published seven novels, six collections of short stories, and a series of business manuals for writers. I’m currently working on novels eight and nine simultaneously. And yes, I know how foolhardy that sounds but there are good reasons why I have to do it – and why both books need to come out this autumn.
Which means I need to release some time from my schedule. In December, I gave up editing Chudleigh Phoenix, our town’s monthly online magazine, after fourteen years. That’s given me back nearly a week each month. But I’m still finding my ToDo list remains uncompleted. Which is why I’m stopping this blog for the moment.
However, I don’t want to lose touch with those of you who have kept me company over the years. If you would like to continue the journey with me, there are a couple of ways to do that.
If you’re primarily reader, then why not sign up for my monthly newsletter, which incudes a free short story or character interview. You can do that by downloading a copy of Flashing On The Riviera, my free book of flash fiction.
If you’re primarily a writer, then there’s a more-or-less monthly newsletter for you too, which includes business tips and news of competitions, workshops and other opportunities you might be interested in. You can sign up for that by downloading a copy of Author Business Foundations, my free guide to writing your own business plan.
Of course if, like many of us, you’re both a reader and a writer, you’re welcome to sign up for both lists.
