I haven’t done this in a while, like probably six or seven years, but it occurs to me that for all you lovely people who have been following this free-will blog offering, many of you since I started in 2010, maybe you’d like to take this opportunity to make a bit of a donation.
If so, zelle, paypal (all you need is my email: hdking719@gmail.com), or venmo: @Heather-King-252
Two of you–and you know who are are, and believe me, I know who you are–make a monthly donation. One of you makes a beautifully generous yearly donation. Several more of you contribute randomly but regularly–again, I appreciate and treasure each of you. Then there’s the stray one-off donation, sometimes unexpectedly generous–that comes out of the blue, no matter the amount warms my heart, and makes my day. Others help by providing shelter, transportation, and valuabele connections. Thank you, thank you, thank you. This post is NOT FOR YOU.
I’ve always looked upon the blog as a gift–to me, to you. It allows me to write freely of whatever moves me on a particular day. It’s a reflection of my whole approach to art, to life, to faith.
On the other hand, I’ve been posting on the average of 2-3 times a week for 14 years. That is a pretty generous free-will offering.
I’ve considered switching the blog over from here to Substack, which as you may know is a subscription-based blogging platform. But for a variety of reasons, I’d rather not do that, at the moment, anyway.
I am, however, going to work with someone who will update the website so as to better highlight my paying services: manuscript editing, writing workshops, retreat-giving.
For the first time since I started writing, I’m going to seriously get together a mailing list.
PROPOSING MORE OF AN “EXCHANGE” MAKES ME FEEL WEIRDLY VULNERABLE: INTERESTING!
I come from blue-collar people who considered “blowing your own horn” a more or less unpardonable offense. Leading with a “sales pitch” is unseemly, I’ve always thought.
I could always stand to increase my earnings. But more to the point, my old anti-marketing ideas are not serving me, nor–who knew?–are they especially serving the people who follow me.
What do I really have to offer? My writing, of course. My enthusiasm, my passion for art and the vocation of art, my love for getting people together and talking about the writing life, the art of memoir, the power of story. My ability to evaluate, help shape, and edit other people’s book manuscripts. My desire to shepherd people who may want to write a book–who may have wanted to for a long time…
Who knows what might grow out of those basic passions and skills, if I offered them a little more clearly and openly?
So I’m kind of saying out loud–“stating my intention” (what have I come to?)–that I would welcome more clients, more connection, more one-on-one interaction.
Those offerings are already explained on various pages of this site. If they’re a teeny bit scattered, soon they won’t be.
Fyi, I’m also working up a flyer for an 8-week Writing Workshop, 8 Saturdays in January and February, 2025. Stay tuned, and let me know if you want to pre-register.
And again, if you’d like to MAKE A DONATION, zelle, paypal (all you need is my email: hdking719@gmail.com), or venmo: @Heather-King-252.
Thank you for your readership, and for your support.
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