Taking the good with the bad...

I had a boss a few years back that didn't take me very seriously. He would tell me to suck it up and do as he said. Same man would walk around singing "It's good to be king." Yeah. We didn't work well together.

But he did say one thing that I remember and even though he said it to be an ass, I took something from it.

Whenever I would propose an idea or ask for a new product line he would grin at me and hold out both of his hands.

"Shit in one hand, and wish in the other," he'd say. "See which one fills up the fastest."

Now, he may have meant that life throws more shit at you than grants you wishes. He may have also been implying my ideas were shit. But the reason I bring it up, is the idea of balance.

My job...made me want to balance heavy things against the back of my boss's skull at times. It also made me want to take charge. Because I have found telling people what to do instead of having to follow rules I don't agree with is more my speed.

While I had to deal with my big bad boss on a daily basis, I also learned how to stand up for myself and fight when my ideas were good.

But here's the thing, everyone has a boss. Everyone has someone they answer to. I found that out when I took my boss's job and realized it sucked balls. Now...I didn't go around singing it's good to be queen, but I better understand the mental break he had that caused his outbursts. 

I also took home a new understanding for his fecal metaphor. 

Wishes don't do anything, and shit piles up when you don't take action. Shit tends to happen even if you think you've got things under control.

There have been a lot of blogs that already covered the topic, but it's hitting me hard lately that my publisher, Samhain Publishing, is about to close it's doors. I could wish all I want that it's not real, and that someone is going to swoop in and make the email pop into my inbox saying it was all some horrible joke, but that's not reality. 

They are staying open to publish already finished books, and to keep selling items they have as assets. It gave me the opportunity to buy some of my books in paper that I wouldn't have been able to get otherwise. And I'm going to have a pre-sale for my upcoming release "Love Shack" in the next couple of weeks, because of the paperback stock I was able to acquire. (More details on that coming soon)

"They say when a door closes, another opens." Well...not always. But when a door slams shut on you, there are two options...

1. Hold out your two hands and do my former boss's shit vs. wish experiment. 

There's not much that will come of this, I've noticed. I've been burying my head in the sand for a little while now, and it's starting to smell. 

2. Grab a sledge hammer and break down a wall until you have a new door.

My publisher is closing. There's not a happy spin on that, and my books are going to be homeless when Samhain Publishing closes their virtual doors for good. Many of my compatriots are putting their books up for self-publication as they have their rights revert, some are submitting these stories to be published elsewhere, and others may end up disappearing all together. 

I'm not the type to go quietly into the night, but I'm not sure which wall to take my sledgehammer to yet. 

So I'm getting some heavy duty gloves to protect my hands from blisters by asking for advice from friends in the industry who have been there before. 

I'm warming up my muscles by continuing to write and promote the books I have control over.

And (have I sufficiently beat this metaphor into the ground yet?) I'm going to make sure I have the best tools available to make my new door. 

My experience in the work place helped me learn to take charge. My experience as an author lately helped me realize nothing is permanent. Time to grab my sledgehammer and figure out which wall to knock down next. 

I'm thinking I should make the door big enough for a Sasquatch to walk through. Yes, I may have a new book stomping through my brain. It may have left some seriously large footprints.

;)

~Roxy

To find Roxy's books with buy links and what she has coming up next check out her website at RoxyRocksMe.com