Sunday 21 March 2010

Yesterday Revisited

Yikes! Weird week at this end.

The reason I stopped writing (without realising I'd stopped) in 2002 ish was an addiction to ebay. A healthy addiction seeing as I made a wee bit of cash, and an unhealthy one because it put me years behind with my writing - I worked on a book like a page a month for years and then gave it a deux ex machina ending before finally consigning it to the cupboard of doom.

Anyway, this week I'm back on ebay. On one hand de-cluttering and finding it really hard to part with things that I love but never use, and on the other hand feeling a need to list on and check ebay every few minutes or so. This be good. This be bad.

In the next few months expect me either to sail past your house in a yacht (I'll claim global warming for those who are land-locked) or I'll be continuing to make up nonsense. I hope the nonsense wins. :D

And on the nonsensical front, I've spent part of this week working on a prequel to my Shock Totem competition entry story. I like it. I intend to send it somewhere huge. Maybe. And as to Violet Stockings of the previous post, who may or may not have been a somebody, I've consigned her to the recycle bin. She didn't work for me.

18 comments:

Andrea Allison said...

I swear the weirdness is spreading. I had to put my dog to sleep. We got snow on the first day of Spring. And the wind blew over one of our trees. This has all happened in the span of two days. I hate to think what Sunday has to offer.

I essentially know what you mean although I've never really been an eBay addict. Here's hoping you don't get sucked back in to that black hole.

Alan W. Davidson said...

After you make your millions on eBay, be sure to dock the good ship Gardner here in St. John's. Watch out for iceburgs, though.

Cate Gardner said...

Andrea, sorry about your dog. :(

Alan, it shall be my first port of call.

Carrie Harris said...

See, if you sell your fabulous stories first, you'll make more money on ebay. You can say things like "Buy the REAL mug that the infamous Cate Gardner actually drank from!"

I'd buy it.

Cate Gardner said...

Carrie, I'm going to stop throwing away used pens. ;)

Kara McElhinny said...

I am always surprised to find out someone else has stopped writing because of the internet. There are certain forums I just can't go to anymore because I spent too much time goofing off and not enough time writing.

As much as it sucks, I really appreciate the story because it makes me see that I wasn't alone in the time suckage department (if that makes sense :P)

But now I found Shock Totem, and The Writer's Block - and they give me the girth I need to push me forward and motivate me!

Congrats on the new story Cate, I am still working on the first story from the flash contest, :D Good luck with your subbing and with your ebay...

if you do buy a yacht and sail past my house, give me a call cause I'd love to take a picture of that... :P

Happy writing!
Hinny

Aaron Polson said...

Nonsesne wins, Cate. Every time.

Cate Gardner said...

Hinny, sales accrued so far = prediction of yacht buyage is 2107.

Aaron, of course.

Katey said...

Yeah nonsense always wins!

I feel you on the difficulty parting with crap you never use, by the way. Drives me crazy when I go through things intending to de-clutter. I dread the day I actually move into a house and start keeping even more junk...

Cate Gardner said...

Katey, I have masses and masses of junk.

Fox Lee said...

Would this yaht have dancing cabana boys?

Anonymous said...

I love decluttering. I especially love decluttering my husband's stuff behind his back. Shhh, don't tell him. ;)

But clutter is time. If I ditch the stuff, then I don't spend a million hours moving it around. And dusting it. And tripping over it.

Hmmm, this might be ablog post later.

-Mercedes

Danielle Birch said...

I have a friend who has an obsession with Ebay. I think just about everything she owns has come from there.

Cate Gardner said...

Nat, most definitely and you're invited on board.

Mercedes, oh decluttering other people's things is so much easier. :D

Danielle, I hope she buys all my clutter.

Barry Napier said...

A lot of my ill-fated characters are till screaming from the recycle bin. Violet is in good company.

K.C. Shaw said...

I hope you make a million on ebay and get rid of stuff--and I hope you keep writing, too. I got soured on ebay years ago when their fees kept going up and up and the buyers weren't bidding and the sellers were jacking up their shipping costs.

Anthony Rapino said...

Ah, yes...ebay. You know, I almost fall for this trap at least once a month, only to realize nothing I own will make money on ebay.

Brendan said...

Been there, Catherine. Who knew that my haunting old book shops to find out-of-print books from my favorite writers would one day, when I needed to de-clutter, turn me into an ebay power seller?

Least I can say truly that I made money selling books . . .