Tuesday 31 December 2013

2013

   2013 has been an interesting year, and quite successful for my shop. I made a greater amount of money and number of sales than I had ever expected, and I've had some exciting sales.
   I hit the front page fewer times than last year, but for once, one of those front page hits actually resulted in a sale - four, in fact.
   I had a spot in a shop in Tokyo that sold a few of my pieces, which was very exciting, and I currently have a shop in London doing the same but on a larger scale. Due to my increased confidence in my business, thanks to these opportunities, I'm reaching out to other shops in the UK to see if they're interested in stocking my items for a short period of time.
   I had a large purchase from a celebrity, which was also very exciting, though by no means my most exciting sale.

   I had some wonderful commissioned items to make, my favourite of which was to recreate a group of three rats which belonged to the girlfriend of the customer, and they were wonderful to make as I love the creatures. Rats are given such a poor reputation, but they are extremely clean and loving animals - they're like little dogs! Unlike hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits and so on, rats will very quickly grow to love and trust you. They usually sleep where you can see them rather than hiding away, and they rush to the side of their cage when you walk by to see you, whether you're their owner or a stranger, unless of course they're asleep. They're also less likely to bite you. I trust rats more than I trust guinea pigs, rabbits or hamsters, all of which I've had.

   Personally, I made great headway with weightloss and I understand the human body a lot more than I used to, and I've also come to realise the very basic fact that only eating properly and keeping active will cause you to lose weight. Despite having suspected it from the beginning and before I tried any, supplements will not help very much, regardless of what companies or their 'customers' will tell you. Some may actually do a little to help, but they're more likely to make you ill than truly help. There is no quick fix, but by truly being aware of what or when you're eating, and keeping as active as you can, but also resting appropriately, you can speed the process. The more rubbish you eat, and the less active you are, the slower the process will be - it really is that simple. And it's taken me a long time to realise that.
   I've not done incredible work with my writing, but I've been trying and I'm gradually getting there with my current book. I've been very busy with my WoW crafting challenge, my blogs, my shops, being a carer and exercising a lot that some things just get pushed to the back burner whether I want them to be or not. I'm still 100% that writing is what I want to do with my life, but I also know that I'd be happy enough to work on stories and concepts for games and films. Not necessarily completely content, but as long as I'm being payed to exercise my passion for fantasy and my creativity, I could live with it.
   My blog has done well and I feel like I'm finally beginning to step out on my own. I find it hard to come up with new content, but I've been doing my best. There aren't enough hours in the day to accomplish everything I want to so each thing I do takes more time than I want it to for that reason. But I'm feeling positive about it, and while I'd like new readers and a broader reach, I feel that I have quality readers and that's definitely what counts. I don't hide who I am, and though there are some things and view points I'd like to express, I know that they're likely to upset people, and there's really no need to say them, so I know when to hold back.

   All in all, 2013 hasn't been too bad. There have been highs and lows, but across 365 days, there will be. What's important is to remember in those low times that things will get better, and during the high times that you should keep your head, and in neither situation should you make rash decisions. I hope that 2014 doesn't see any lower moments than 2013, for everyone.

   Are you satisfied with what you've accomplished during 2013? What did you achieve? What did you fail to achieve? What do you regret doing or not doing?



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I do read every single comment, and I will try to respond where I can. If you have an important question about my blog or my shop, however, then you might be better off contacting me directly by email. Thanks so much for reading my blog!