So the larger shipment of my books have arrived at Amazon. Unfortunately I have had to move them all to Amazon because I will be moving soon and won’t be able to ship them directly from home. 

It makes me kind of sad that I won’t be able to pack and ship my own books for awhile because one of the most rewarding parts of selling my books has been that I’ve been able to feel connected to my customers since I get to see a bit of who they are. The other day I sold a book to a Harvard law student and I did a little happy dance, it means people are hearing about it! For now I will have to just trust Amazon to do it’s things and move my books as best as I can by promoting it on Amazon. Ah Amazon. How you rule the world. Going forward I won’t be able to see who bought my book and that personal connection will be lost, but it was what had to be done for the move.

I suppose it’s not a bad thing in some ways. I drew a comic really early on called “giant ball of sad” which I haven’t posted about my books. It is about a girl who just had crates and crates of books at home and their presence made her sad because they kept reminding her that she wasn’t selling them. Since the early rush, my books too, have sat in my apartment and there would be days and days where I don’t sell a single one and it was starting to drag on my confidence. I guess getting them out of my sight helps me to continue pushing forward with my work.

I have to remind myself that everything just takes time. I have to remind myself that when you’re trying to do something a little bit different, it’s an uphill battle to get noticed and that no one cares and won’t care for a long long time. But that I must continue to chip away at it, a little bit at a time, and to not lose heart.

Doing the marketing bits makes me REALLY sad. You send out emails and books and then just silence. Last week was especially bad. Despite my personal champions submitting me to several sources, no one responded or cared. One of my friends has repeatedly brought up my work with my alma mater and they COULD CARE LESS. It’s unbelievably disappointing when your own law school not only doesn’t care about your work but instead insists on calling you on a Saturday to ask for donations. News flash — maybe you would get more donations if you actually supported your alumni! Further to this, my champions also submitted me to a popular travel-eating blog of a fellow alumni who has a section profiling lawyers who have left practice to do interesting things. And… nothing. No love. Nada.

I suppose I should quit my whining. I don’t expect success to be handed to me. This is just the price of my choices and the price of this journey I am on. Most people spend their whole lives working in the dark without recognition and that is just the way of the world. Another day, another bit of pushing. At least I am not Sisyphus and have hope that one day I’ll have gotten somewhere!

-W.