“Might paint something I might want to hang here someday,
Might write something I might want to say to you someday,
Might do something I’d be proud of someday.
Mark my words, I might be something someday.”

– Tegan and Sara, “Someday”

What I love about this song is the optimism it exudes. The claim of potential greatness isn’t a desperate plea for more time, it’s a confident statement of what might lie ahead. And it doesn’t mean that you’re unhappy with who you are currently, or that you don’t feel proud of your accomplishments to date. Real faith in your potential comes from a strong sense of self-confidence.
For years, my mother has told me that  I have potential.( Of course she usually follows that positive statement with a ‘but’ clause and goes into how I’ve squandered that potential, but that’s a story for another day. ) Every time she would say that, I would feel mildly panicked. I did not believe that I had any real potential, and any that I may have had I was locked out of by my anxieties and general shortcomings. Really, I would feel a wave of guilt as if I was deceptively presenting myself as a talented individual. I can say now, clearly and confidently, that I do have potential. Reams of it. Giant, terrifying piles of potential, growing bigger and badder every day.
And I don’t see the optimism as being tied to achieving the promised greatness. My only hope is that I can keep improving, and if I do something fantastic, then great. But, if I never reach the dizzying heights of astounding success, I will have the satisfaction of having met a parade of interesting people, and I will have a lifetime full of wonderful experiences. The best part of the whole deal is that  Max is going to watch me on this journey and learn from my both my triumphs and my astounding mistakes, cheering for me along the way. Mark my words, I might be something someday 🙂

Recently a friend of mine went on at length about his dislike and fear of “The Corporations”. This diatribe was brought on partially in response to the recent election, and partially by an iPad commercial he took offense to. To him, Apple products are the epitome of empty, evil consumer manipulation, in addition to being the cause of a variety of other societal ills. I quickly backed out of trying to argue against him, because he is slightly crazy and not terribly open to alternate viewpoints. You can hate corporations, sure, but keep in mind that every corporation is filled with normal human beings trying to find their way to a fulfilling life. Vilifying the entire organization isn’t fair to the good people inside of it.
Now let me hoop over the fence to the anti-corporate side of things. There are two elements of big business that I think add very little or even harm our society as a whole: shareholders, conglomerates, and middle managers.
Shareholders only care about one thing:profit. Indeed, the corporations are legally required to put shareholder profit above any and all other considerations. For the most part, shareholders don’t care about healthy workers or environmental responsibility. They buy the stock and expect to make money from it, even though they do none of the work to earn the money. I know, I know, the shareholders money is ostensibly used to improve the company’s money-making ability, so you can argue that their investment counts as ‘work’ but it’s not the same as earning something through the sweat of your brow. Everything a publicly owned company does has to be vetted by the shareholders, while a private company has no such considerations. Private companies can take risks and make painful short-term choices with long-term benefits. Public companies have to show progress and growth to the shareholders every quarter, even though the idea of limitless growth is foolish.
And what needs to be said about middle management that Dilbert hasn’t already covered? This layer of uselessness makes nothing, and carries no responsibility for the success or failure of the company itself. It’s a layer of thick, human mediocrity that is just smart enough to wriggle out of doing honest work, but too dumb to come up with a good idea. Every time you hear someone use stupid business speak, claiming to ‘leverage synergy’ or get the people ‘out of the weeds’ they are announcing their intent to accomplish nothing. To be fair, middle managers do achieve one thing: bloat. Whether it’s fattened reports devoid of useful information, or giant teams of barely competent staff doing very little, the middle managers are the creators of it.
I am not an enemy of prosperity or success. I think any individual should have the opportunity to achieve to the fullest extent of their abilities. A good business gives its employees the opportunity to produce something of value, something to feel proud of. I have to believe that any business filled with happy and fulfilled workers would be financially successful.

That’s  it! I am done waiting. It’s time to…Sell Some Fiction!

My first book is up for sale now, in both digital and physical form. It’s a young adult book with modern-day magic and daring high school adventures. Daring! And what is this book like, a prospective reader may ask. Well, There’s some Hardy Boys in its DNA (though there are no pirates, smugglers or chubby kids named ‘Chet’), and a bit of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, but without vampires. And if, in the process of reading the book it reminds you of any other works of fiction, please let me know. Without further ado, here are the links:

For the eBook:

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/54859

For the physical book:

http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/witchkids/15841059

(If you’re in my local area and you want to buy a physical copy, let me know. I’m ordering a bunch, and I can save you the shipping costs)

So, dear minions (if I may call you minions) please dig into your change pocket and buy a copy. If you like the book, and I think you will, please recommend it to your friends. My marketing budget is zero dollars, so I’m hoping that you wonderful people will be the wind beneath my commercial wings. And, if you have a moment, please leave a review or give the book a rating on the site. Higher rankings mean more visibility. I read that on a billboard or something. Oh, and if your kids are old enough to handle YA fiction, please let them read your copy (I should have said ‘buy them a copy too’. Dang it!) I would really like to know what they think of it.

If you’re on the fence about buying a copy, consider it an investment in my potential. This book is good, but it isn’t the best thing that I will ever do. My writing is going to keep improving as I grind away at it, and your financial support gives me the time to practice. In the fall, the little dude will be attending pre-school for 3 full days a week if we can afford it, and I can hardly imagine how much I will be able to get done with that much time. Also, I love each and every one of you, and I’d buy a book from you if you had one 🙂

I’d like to thank all of you once again, my strangely faithful readers. Knowing that there is an audience out there watching me and following my antics has kept me motivated, and helped give this whole process meaning. Good work, internet friends!