Blogging

On Twitter, I came across someone saying that you can market before you're done writing your book.

This might work if you already have fans for previous works. This is NOT something that seems worthwhile to new authors who are pouring their souls into new books unless they are doing their books collaboratively on the web with their audience.

The cat is out of the bag; I'm back to work as of... today... in a new role, in a new company, doing something that I'm good at in a company that I expect will challenge me. It's not that I gave up as much as I adapted - a few people have commented on the web or in person that I 'sold out'. Well, hell, entrepeneurs are sell outs as well. It's the nature of being an entrepeneur - selling what you're good at.

But I didn't get good at writing overnight - and it isn't as if I can't improve. Sometimes I read old things I've written and cringe - I don't know anyone who writes seriously that hasn't encountered this. It took decades of reading and decades of writing. It took lots of miserable people who think they communicate well to teach me that they didn't, it took few people who did communicate well to teach me how they do it right. It took self-absorbed people who are too stubborn to avert disaster. It took people consistently not listening to my advice and words, particularly my parents, to make me try to constantly improve upon my communication skills. The technical background is a no brainer for me. The ability to understand the web is intrinsic- you can't be afraid of something that you saw when it was young and didn't wear pants. In fact, there are parts of the Internet that still don't wear any pants. No kidding.

The real lessons here are adaptation, perseverance and doing what you love - even when what you love changes. When I was 11 through 16, my dream was to be a professional computer programmer. At 17, I was gainfully employed and writing code for this new-fangled technology then that is already outdated now: Laserdisc video training. From there it has been not programming as much as what sort of programming.

Back in 1999, I first got paid for programming in English. Since then, I wrote some articles that were published in magazines, an eBook on SecondLife and a whole bunch of other stuff that resides in a database backup somewhere amidst my electronic paraphernalia. And now I'm a Communications Manager, something I expect I'll have to grow into a bit. It's also why I haven't been writing for a week - and I do have much to write outside of work that will be showing up over time here and over at the re-re-purposed KnowProSE.com.

As I finish up repurposing KnowProSE.com to become the site for KnowProSE LLC, I've also been busy with a client site, Drupal 7 and perhaps too much conversation about strategic partnerships with people. It's easy to get overloaded when you're trying to do too much at the same time, and people have their own priorities. Today what is important to you isn't important to them, tomorrow it is important to them and not as important to you. Crazy ride.

One thing someone asked about was what would happen with all the blog content from KnowProSE.com. That doesn't seem as much of a big deal to me as I'm more interested in creating content than re-reading content I wrote - but it is flattering that some considered the content worth keeping. It resides in database backups, and as elusive time becomes available, I may bring that content here to OpenDepth.com.

And that brings up the repurposing of OpenDepth.com. Where once it was just private meanderings, OpenDepth.com will expand into just about everything I feel like writing about. In this way, the business and its blog become separate entities. What I may say personally may even run contrary to what is necessary for the business at times - I don't expect that, I don't hope for that, but I have been around long enough in The Real World (tm) to know that the official position comes with politics in strategic partnerships, etc.

KnowProSE LLC

And it isn't as if KnowProSE LLC will ever have much sway in the world of ominous bloggers, website design, or anything that it does. Maybe I'm wrong about that. I'm not out to become the next Amazon.com, the next Google.com... if success comes to that degree, I may be happy. Or maybe not. Either way, I'll deal with it as it comes.

Plots for world domination aren't behind KnowProSE LLC. It is something that will allow me to channel my energy in my own ways so that when I have less energy, I'll have a little battery that will provide for my eventual retirement and, yes, funeral. My father, despite his holdings and hard work throughout his life, somehow managed to not have enough money in his bank account to cover his funeral and estate expenses. As talented and skilled as he was, he could never seem to get ahead, barely breaking even. In the end, he didn't break even. I intend to. I plan to. That's the morbid side of KnowProSE LLC.

The lighter side is that, hopefully, it will allow for the right projects that will allow the world to be a better place - either in little things or big things. Getting to a position where it can pick and choose its projects is the first business priority. Crawling before walking, walking before running, running before flying.

OpenDepth.com

And this blog becomes more about my eccentric and eclectic thoughts, as noteworthy or boring as they may be. It's important for me to write. The last week for me has been like the filling of a balloon. So tonight, I write.