(And I don't mean for one of my characters either)
Hi folks!
A request for feedback:
Today you find your scribe VERY much in the doldrums... Errr... Basically I'm penniless – or nearly so! At present I am putting all my energies (or nearly so) in to the new book (which is coming along nicely – or would be if I wasn't being afflicted by bouts of debilitating panic) while simultaneously working on a project alongside Roger Benson and the 3D artist, Angela Fox (which, I think is nowhere near completion and from which I am unlikely to derive much in the way of monetary reward). I'm also embroiled in rebuilding the website – The Original Institute – in which the Beyond the Barred Window site resides from the ground up (Yes, it's true I've done little with it for a year, but partly that was because of medical reasons – and all that is about to change. In the meantime, in the absence of any new publication, the income (as small as it was) from my existing titles has all but dried up – as tends to happen.
The thing is: Ordinarily - and up to now - none of this would have mattered much; I was living on savings, it was never expected to generate a living wage (and never will) and was a hobby as much as anything, albeit one I wanted to share – and enjoy sharing - with others. And then the bombshell: Yesterday, at the bank, it emerged I have nothing like the cash left I thought I had. The only way I can understand / explain the situation is that when I walked in to a branch just before Christmas and they told me the balance of my current account, it was in error. What they were referring to was another account I have which holds the remains of my life savings and which, based on the figure they told me, I hadn't expected to have to resort to until mid-way through next year. Consequently I'm in big trouble if I'm to get these various projects, which are VERY dear to my heart - to the point, with no exaggeration, they literally keep me going, psychologically speaking - finished before I am reduced to abandoning everything to run around seeking social benefit and so on (I presently do not claim income support and so on – and work is unlikely).
Sorry if all this sounds rambling but what all this is about is that as much as anything I am seeking your collective opinion: I am considering adding some kind of donation button to the right hand sidebar here and on the websites saying something like “If you have enjoyed the content here and wish to support this blog / website / the author's next outpourings please make a small donation – thank you!”.... I have seen similar elsewhere, but never really liked the concept myself (it sounds a little too much like those characters who bother me in coffee bars and so on), but things are getting truly desperate if I am to finish this and continue writing (I expect loads of folks will now pitch up and say, well why bother then – you're bloody awful! But I know SOME folks like my stuff – and it IS getting better (I hope).
Anyway... What do you think? Should I add a 'please donate' button? Or is that just TOO distasteful for words? At this stage I am asking for nothing but your opinion – and that just costs a little time and effort....
Either post a comment or you can email me direct:
toyntanen@googlemail.com
Ta!