Working Title

I am still working on a few things, one of which is a personal brand.  I already have a brand, Doud Dairy Farm, that is tied too closely to me to really easily leverage.  At some point I would like to purchase a dairy operation and attach the brand, but that is where I am with that right now.

I've got a couple of private label ideas I am working through, just to start them, will obviously cost quite a bit, but they are still in the discovery stage.

Then there is my personal brand.  Besides publishing a few books, I want to get back into photography (digital this time), with an angle towards stock and product photography.  I also would like to publish a few non-fiction books.  I am working on a cookbook, I guess as a way to also highlight my photography and my belief in simple foods.  I would like to publish a book of my cabin designs, I have four of them already, but I think I need at least ten to make the book worthwhile.

The fiction books are much harder to complete than I anticipated, or I am being to critical of my work.  One thing about working in a vacuum is that you do not get a lot of feedback.  I know I have trust issues, and that is part of why I do not seek outside assistance.  There are a couple people I could trust, but can I trust them to be critical enough, that is my other issue.

I tried to find an agent, but after six months of looking, I decided that self publication was more my style.  With services like Kindle publishing and Create Space (among others), it is much easier to be self published, but much harder to be sure your work is of good quality, and edited properly, as for now I am my own editor, cover artist (that should be good for a laugh), and my own PR manager.  I know I just got to get the books out there, but it is difficult because I keep finding problems, and I do not know if they exist for everyone or just for me.

I have read a lot of work and most of it I would say in the last five or so years is not anything that will have the longevity of Dickens or Tolkien, but they are several who at least will have some success in their lifetime.

By now everyone is thinking I am getting my excuses in early, and maybe I am, as I often wonder if I will ever commit to actually publishing my work.  Then I think if I do not some one will after I'm gone, and they will likely not be as generous with the proceeds as I might be.

Well I've gone on wallowing in my own self pity long enough, time to move on, and let the daylight come to wash away my tears.

Peace
JD