Collection: 11/08/2010

A weekly collection of my writings from around the web as defined here.
Format:
name of blog : direct link to article
AMPed – Your Virtual Front Door: Part V – Using Social Media for Outreach and PR, part ii
Excessively Diverting – First it begins with an idea…then all hell breaks loose.
Excessively Diverting – Excessively Diverting is open!
Excessively Diverting – [Contest]: Pick the literacy foundation for donations from E.D.!
Jane Austen Tumblelog [tumblr] – Chapters 7 – 10 quotes, Pride and Prejudice
Reviews – Books:
The Library Diaries by Ann Miketa (GoodReads, LibraryThing)

[Excessively Diverting] First it begins with an idea…then all hell breaks loose

Oh, what a mess.
Oh, what a mess.

[This entry originated from my crafts blog, Excessively Diverting. My Etsy shop of the same name opens up this weekend. ]
A couple of weeks ago, I got this brilliant idea of repurposing used books, specifically books that were in the open domain1, into a variety of different ways. After discussing this with several friends of mine who are huge crafters/Etsy sellers and doing research across the intarwebs/Etsy, I realized my idea is awesome and that I had definitely hit upon a niche market. The response from my friends, from conversations and showing them prototypes, was overwhelming – not only were they enthusiastic about the idea, but they were also future consumers. The timing was also perfect since it is the beginning of the holiday season and as such, was a perfect time to test out the idea.
Isn't it interesting that an independent woman is often referred to as being obstinate?
Isn’t it interesting that an independent woman is often referred to as being obstinate?

The one thing no one told me, however, is that having a great idea is awesome but pushing it out to fruition is a lot of damned hard work. Not only did I end up creating various batches of the first product to nail down the process (an example is shown to your right), but I also have to do my own business plans, marketing and support.
For the last week I’ve been working during the day on the marketing and promotion aspect and at night, on the actual crafting. The other interesting thing is that each of my friends that I spoke to about their own Etsy shop, all do their selling and promotion differently. So tips I’ve learned from one, I’ve reiterated to another and so forth while streamlining it all in my own head. While our apartment is currently a mess as we’re in the midst of packing for our move, I’m also in the process of streamlining everything and getting the Etsy shop up this weekend.
The purpose of this blog, then, is to document my process, talk about crafting in the 21st century, use it as a forum to announce new products and services, and last but not least, keep the customers engaged with the me about the shop. More details coming soon. Welcome to Excessively Diverting.
1. Books in the open domain are books that were published before 1923 and/or have lost their U.S. copyright. See Project Gutenberg for more details.

Collection: 11/02/2010

A weekly collection of my writings from around the web as defined here.
Format:
name of blog : direct link to article
AMPed – Your Virtual Front Door: Part IV – Using Social Media for Outreach and PR
Jane Austen Tumblelog (tumblr) – Chapters 4 – 6 quotes, Pride and Prejudice
Reviews – Books:
Grave Surprise by Charlaine Harris (AmazonGoodReads, LibraryThing)
 

Wanted: Your (used, well loved, weeded, no longer needed) books

Librarians! Booksellers! Bibliophiles! I am in the process of doing a fairly large project that will be heavily dependent on used books. I am currently scouring local charity shops, used bookstores and library book sales for my needs, but thought I’d put the call out to the internets. I’m looking for a particular types of books, so if you have anything you think might be of interest to me via the list below, contact me via email, Facebook, Twitter or comment here and let me know what you have.
I will pay for shipping of the materials.
I am looking for:

  • Classic authors (think Austen, Brontes, Melville, Dickens, Joyce, Tolstoy, etc) whose works are in the public domain. If you\’re unsure, email me for clarification or see if their work is available on Project Gutenberg. I’m not picky about the author or the title, just as long as it is in the public domain.
  • Books by Ian Fleming, mainly James Bond series.
  • Not terribly picky about edition, publishing house or locality. Will accept non-US based English and also foreign editions.
  • Preferably hardcover but will accept paperbacks depending on size/condition.
  • Would prefer and love large print versions, but not necessary.
  • If the cover is ripped/torn/damaged, but the majority of the interior text is clean, I still want it.

 
Mwah!