Friday, July 28, 2006

Welcome, Etsy shoppers!

For some completely oddball reason, my Etsy shop has made the front page of Etsy. I set up a shop there a few weeks ago called "Strong Words." I won't describe it. Click on the first link in the previous sentence to see it for yourself. But...

If you're reading this, there's a good chance you just came FROM Etsy. How can I tell? Because my traffic stats for this blog went through the roof as soon as it happend. For the few of you who came from elsewhere, you can go to my shop and see that I put a little tag at the end of my items that reads, "For author's writing samples, see: www.TinkerX.com."

Since what I'm offering on Etsy are writing service, that seemed only fair.

I have yet, after a month of having the shop up on Etsy, to sell one item. [7/30 UPDATE: I sold a "Previous Life Bio for Your Cat" yesterday; my first Etsy sale. A great experience. I was very pleased to do the work, and the customer was pleased, according to her feedback. More props to Etsy.] Which is OK. As I set up the shop as a lark. The site really, really appealed to me. It's a great example of social networking + web store + art + reverse auction thingy. Very cool. I wanted to participate. Problem is... I'm not very crafty. I do a few things -- I've built two duclimers (which would make no sense to sell or do again for money, as they take forever), I've taught arts & crafts, I like to do stuff with Dan (my nearly 7-year-old)... but it's not part of my "I do this for other people" geshtalt. Writing, however, is.

But... damn it! I wanted to participate at Etsy. Thus, "Strong Words." Worst case? I make a fool of myself and the owners of the site say, "Dude. That's not on brand for us. Tear down your silly store." Which I would have done with no complaints, as "words" aren't really (to be fair) right up the main street of what they're doing. I'm not doing any harm... but I'm not really moving their ball forward.

Best case, though? They put me on the front page and I get 10-times the hits to my blog as normal. Thanks, Etsy!

So. If you've come here for additional free writing from me, here are some more links:

Some poetry:


Winter Triptych ~ Visit in Summer ~ The Glass BedShadowlamp ~ Thinspun ~ LightshowFifth Season ~ Outside-in ~ Pause ~ Getting In ~ Recess ~ Exchange of Hunger ~ Wear White ~ Stucco ThicketThe Blower-Man Must Die

Some prose:


Fourth Wall -- A longish short-story, or short novella. Maybe a screen-play in short-story format. Near-future fiction with a slight cyberpunk flava. Read it online or download the PDF.

The Delicate Pattern -- Getting a friend to the church... on time and alive.

Jesus is a Liberal -- An essay originally published in the now defunct online magazine RouseMag.

The Age of Content -- Content as the central engine of vale in this, our current age. Primarily a marketing essay, but the point is one that bears consideration for other disciplines.

A creativity system


If you want to write stories yourself, check out TaleWeaver. It's cool and fun and I've now sold over 30 copies on Amazon! Only 999,968 to go and it'll be a million seller!

Way too much more


Basically, every poem I've ever written (that's worth even a glance... and some that really, well... let's just say they're experimental) and a bunch of other stuff can be found under my author page at Lit.org. Knock thyself out.

And if you've come from somwhere else, and don't know nothin' about Etsy, go check it out. They're good people who, apparently, have a sense of humor. Which, in my book, makes them even cooler than I thought before I set up my goofy store.

And if you HAVE come here from Etsy, and you do enjoy writing, reading, commenting, etc... leave a comment. Go over to Lit.org and join up and get in on the fun. Drop me an email. Something. It's not really about the money, see. It's about the words. And if they stop with what I've written, and you don't chime in... well, that's the end of the story, eh?

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