3 months in
Hello everyone,
We’re now a bit past the 3 month mark of my 6 month experiment. It’s a good time to check in and see how I’m progressing.
In July, I laid out that, in order for me to keep going, the following would need to happen.
a) I’d need to sell ~500 books by Christmas
b) Have taught 4 workshops and have 2-3 set up for 2025
c) Have an exhibition teed up for 2025
d) Finish my Dingo work
So, how are we going?
a) So far I have sold 158 books - 31 through our online store, 83 to shops and 44 in person. It seems unlikely that I’ll get to 500 by the end of the year, however I think it’s likely I get to 350-400, which wouldn’t bee too bad at all!
b) I have taught 4 workshops already and have two more lined up for the rest of the year - so that’s a big win.
c) I have one exhibition lined up for 2025, and am hoping that will be 2 by the end of November
d) The Dingo work is not finished by a long stretch but we’re getting there. The July roadtrip was cut short by bad weather and I didn’t get much of what I wanted, but that’s ok.
So - in general mostly this is going well. I have had a few well-timed big wins, have created some good relationships which I hope turn into paid opportunities and am seeing some reasonable success.
Because of this, it’s probably worth updating these goals a bit.
With Tall Poppy Press I’m aiming to sell 400-500 books (a stretch but let’s try!) and complete a brand refresh that will see a new website, better product photos and a merch line ready for 2025.
Arts education - I hope to teach one more workshop this year, in Melbourne.
Additionally, I’m aiming to build an education space in my garage and be able to host workshops at home in 2025. By the end of the year I hope that the build out is done and I can advertise for the first new type of workshop.
I also hope to have lined up some further work in WA for the middle of next year. It would be great to have 2-3 regional workshops set up and then some time in Perth.
With my own art I hope to have completed the dingo work, have two exhibitions lined up and written another article for Australia Geographic.
The reality is that, even with all these things going well, it’s probably sensible to do some CRT (relief teaching) or short term work during the quiet times, but I’m really dragging my feet. To be honest I’m not a fan of the work and doing more work when I can is perhaps not really the sort of life I want to lead.
I sort of struggle with this tension a bit. On one hand, if there’s a week or two with not much on, why not earn some extra money? Life can be expensive and perhaps a bit more goes a long way. But, at the same time, if I wanted to just earn the most money I’d go back to full time work. I’m trying to have less on AND still be somewhat financially stable.
So perhaps I will, and perhaps I won’t do the CRT work. It’s not a huge issue right now, however it’s a good thing to talk myself into - if needed.
A big thanks to everyone who has helped these first 3 months be a big success, in lots of ways they have been more successful than I could have hoped for. I really appreciate the support.
The experiment is still live - we will see if it works out, even a good 3 months doesn’t mean that the 6 months goes swimmingly, it’s important to allow space to try something else if I need to. It’s too early to not keep options open.