Thank You to all who came, saw, spent and shared

It is very hard being an online retailer, let alone blogger. it takes time, a whole lot of unpaid time, perhaps this is a thing many don't get, how we value things.

If there ever was a scheme, let's call it universal good... we all start with a net worth of £300 a week... paid from the Govt!

Yes, to us all... then, if you 'earn' either by paid employment or 'self' it factors into tax/NI etc...

Rather than some get paid say £500 a week and others work 70 hours and get nothing...

In lockdown(s) I did about 6-10 hours a day- often sold 1 or less books a day...

I didn't get a furlough or a grant, was I in the wrong, was I doing things badly?

No!

It was and is just how it is for a small scale entrepreneur, whether an artist, poet, writer or singer or in my case doer of things with books.

So, in the last 6 months, I did get some online sales 1457 actually, and they netted me a profit of £0

I gave too much discount and I covered postage and when you factor a wage for the effort of listing, PR and such, time to/from delivering and posting...

I worked for free.. for myself as it goes, but for free...

Technically I am still a bona fide business, or rather just about...

My events used to make sense and a small profit, but so few happened for 18 months, my school orders are/were/will work out...

But, when it comes to making a living from self employed online bookselling, it just doesn't work for me sadly...

I'd think only 5-10 of you will read this, maybe 1-3 will comment...

I've been involved in Books for 34 years!

I still love books and the bits connected, not literally, as there are too many of you to love like that, but virtually, like selling online.

I'm finally and I think/hope rightly making a life change, one of my best friends and a huge supporter of my efforts and co partner in storytelling activities Sally-Anne is a teacher/literacy lead at a High School I work with, she offered me a chance...

To assist her in running their school library, training/helping the wonderful junior librarians and also I am training and will be a Literacy Teacher ( One on One), she runs a scheme called 'Reading' and it aims to build confidence and improvement for those who are not on the right levels... I've seen her and others use the scheme and it is both user friendly and cleverly non intrusive in it's methodology.

So, I'll be less active for others, I intend to offer my skills/services in a new way, remotely and sometimes with another person standing in for me...

I'll keep my shop running, in half terms etc I can whatever I can to be there too...

At 55 I truly think I need to be in one place, doing something I like with people I like working with and most importantly helping those who struggle, to read more and enjoy it. Books and reading are magic for the mind, the mind can take you anywhere and enable anything... So, a new journey begins as doors open...