forgive me

[mmegaera]

For I am slightly buzzed.

But would someone please like to explain to me why I had no trouble whatsoever shelling out three grand for my museum studies certification four years ago (which I do not regret doing for one moment, mind you) but can't talk myself into spending $300 apiece for a couple of classes on self-publishing (how to design covers, write teaser copy, design the interior of a paper book, etc.) that I suspect would help my writing income rather a lot?

Comments

[nishatalitha]

Sometimes $300 is just enough to feel like a lot of money, whereas $3,000 doesn't quite feel real. I don't know why it can be harder to spend a few hundred dollars on something than a few thousand. There are magic numbers (not of the mathmatically defined sort) in my head—is it the same for you?

Good luck!

[mmegaera]

Yes, there are magic numbers in my mind, too. Part of it, I think, is also that the museum program was a university program, so officially recognized and all that. The self-publishing courses I'm looking at are more than reputable, but they're through a private company. Also, they're online, not in person. So I think it's me having a hard time believing that they're "real," even though they're better than what I'd get through a university, given the subject matter.

[nishatalitha]

That makes sense. I would probably have a similar divide in my head (heck, I do with universities vs polytechnics). But it sounds like you've done the research about what the good courses are and that it's an investment in your writing that you've think is worthwhile—and worthwhile investments make their money back eventually.

[mmegaera]

You're right. I will probably take the leap in April after the exhibit gig is finished.

[kk1raven]

Perhaps part of the reason is that you consider your museum work to be a "real" job while you haven't quite convinced yourself that writing is a "real" job for grownups? Society in general seems to have a problem with treating writing as real work. Having read your books, I definitely think that taking courses that would help you market them better is a justified expense.

[mmegaera]

Yeah, that, too [wry g]. And as I said to nishtalitha, it's also a matter of the classes being "official" and all, too, since they're through a private company (reputable as all heck, but still) rather than a university, and because they're online rather than in person.

Also, I've had this Thing (in the Kareenian sense) about the books having to make significant money before I spend money on them. Investing in something I might not make back the money on is scary (that excuse really isn't valid anymore, though, because I am starting to make enough sales to be noticeable -- grocery money, at least). Although I had no guarantee of making my museum cert. money back, either (I have, though, a few times over). I don't know -- gotta spend money to make money, I guess. It's just scary.

[aldersprig]

I was going to say much of what kk1raven said.

That being said, have you considered using your writing to fund the classes in a less conventional manner? Kickstart a class? Write a fund raiser? $300 is not a ridiculous amount to ask the interwebs for.

[mmegaera]

I'm not sure I've got enough people who consider themselves fans (who have extra money floating around) to actually pull off a Kickstarter yet.

There's another scary thought -- throwing that kind of party and discovering just how many fans I don't have [wry g].

I can manage the cash, I think, better than I could manage having no one donate.