Blank page…

Why is a blank page such a barrier to be broken down? It stares back at you in all its pristine blankness… It inspires the creation of something beautiful, but to try too hard to create something beautiful, without allowing the mistakes and mess that come along with that creation, can be make ideas run for cover, in case they’re not worthy of being printed on the new blank page.

But wasn’t a new exercise book a beautiful thing when we were children? It inspired neat writing, that lasted only as long as it took for ideas to start tumbling out faster and faster, and until the first mistake had been scribbled out, because really who wants to put a neat line through a mistake!

And that’s just the written word – what about illustrations? To make that first mark, or the first rubbing out; but what if in rubbing out, you lose a moment of magic that can’t be summoned back? Better then to start a new picture, and fill a sketchbook, than trying to get that first picture perfect.

An author blog is another outlet for creativity, but also another thing that takes time. As a self publisher, the more I learn, the more I realise there is to learn, and my final nemesis is to bring the personal touch of a book signing to the convenience of an online book shop. That is what I’m currently working towards, to get enough visitors to my website to make it worth opening a shop on my website, because I’ve tried this before, but without first building a following of potential buyers for my books. So, much like crafting a story, if it doesn’t work one way, I turn it on its head and try from a different angle.