As a writer or a creative person in general, I think your work should speak for itself and that's not how I like to use my horn anyway.
I wrote my first "story" a while back and, having no other avenue to pursue, had to self publish it on the Amazon Kindle Monstrosity. I tried submitting my "manuscript" to more than a dozen agents and they all thought I was crazy (praps I am...)
So after three months of sitting on the Amazon, I've had two five star reviews. One of which was recently removed because of Amazon's crazy policies (no explanation, no reasons, just blamo, gone huh).
I also received my first paycheck and it was, shall we say, meager, at best.
But the part I celebrated, was the info provided (which was minimal), that stated that fifty-seven people purchased my story.
Now this doesn't mean that fifty-seven people actually read the whole thing. Some people may have given up after the "lengthy" first chapter and I'm okay with that.
It's not for everyone right, but not bad for a guy with no Facebook and a blog audience of about six.
So I decided, a smidge ago, that I would upload my words to the pirates. The "share ers" of the big bad interweb and wouldn't you know it, a couple of days later and one of the pirate kings in Poland gets himself caught and the world is scrambling to find his replacement.
Argh is me and such is the life of a pirate right.
But I think I'll upload it again someday, when the pirate ship is righted.
It is, after all, and what I keep telling myself, not about the money.
I let Amazon sell it for five bucks (five American dollars and mabes three point eighty British pounds if their money doesn't keep shrinking...)
And my "agreement" with the big bad Amazon was that I get to keep two, of that five.
Meaning, if I feel like doing the math on a Wednesday, two dollars times fifty seven sales, one oh four eh.
So wait one second, hold on Mr Bishop and why are you tryin' to do math on a Wednesday, eek gads..!
I know. Either way you do the math, it's not much and I'm okay with that, I honestly am.
What I set out to do, at the very beginning of my adventure, was to give the world an alternative to the "modern" religions.
Or mabes I should label them the "pre modern fossil religions that don't make any sense and aren't really applicable in today's world"...
Yep, that seems almost right.
I wanted to show someone, anyone (particularly my son), that there is no get out of jail free card like in the Monopoly with no Rey.
There should be these things like accountability and responsibility, that all of us have, to be sorta decent to each other right.
There is no live a horrible human life and still get into a glorious afterlife because you recanted at the last minute and asked a god for forgiveness of all things.
There is no live a horrible human life then crash a plane into a skyscraper while claiming you're a participant in a holy war making yourself a martyr and now you get forty virgins.
My view of the afterlife is one where every life is witnessed.
Every act, every thought and every want is seen by every soul, ever. And scrutinized as if it were under a microscope.
Compared to others. Examined by everyone but more importantly, examined over and over, by yourself.
It makes the world a better place for lack of a better catch phrase.
It makes people who have wronged others, who have cheated and lied and stolen, want to make peace and "fix" things in their lifetimes, before it's too late.
It makes people want to live better lives and jeeze, do you think it's time we all learned how to do this yet.
I really don't care about the money.
I care about my son and the kind of world that he will have to live in someday.
If you have children you sorta care about, help spread my story, help teach others about my beliefs.
If you know an agent or a movie maker, I'll write you in for a finder's fee but, don't do it for the money.
Do it because you want to look back on the story that is your life, and feel somewhat proud of the actions that you took.
Do it because everyone you have ever known and everyone you will ever know, is watching you, is with you, right now.
