Burning the Midnight Oil

Here I am at midnight on a Friday night, typing away, writing copy for my web page. I just uploaded the files to the server and I'm taking a break to gather my brains back up, so I can work on another page. My husband is snoring quite loudly and I'm listening to Julie and Julia while I work, hoping to keep inspired, when my eyelids have long lost their inspiration. This feels strangely like college. I wonder what other people are doing with their Friday night? I know most of them are out having a good time, unwinding from a hard weeks work. Not me though - no, not me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, just plugging away at my dreams. They feel so close right now, I can almost touch them. My little beach cottage with the periwinkle blue shutters is out there waiting for me to come buy it.

OK, back to reality....................and my web site.

Just Waiting Around

Well the meeting went well and I've started the process of optimizing. I really like Fred (he's our optimizer) and he really seems to know hs stuff. It would seem that I did inded find that lost bag of sand I was looking for, so to speak. I have a good feeling that we're going to start being found very soon. Got a nice fat list of keywords for Fred to look over and inquired with my hosting company as to how to get our blog moved onto our site, which was suggested by Fred. Now I'm just sitling here waiting to hear back so I can get started. I really don't care for waiting. Maybe I should start drwaing, although I hate to do that, because I know I won't want to get back to the task at hand. I really wish my business only intailed drawing and designing and that I had a staff to do the rest, but it'll just have to wait. There's that word again. How come I can't just enjoy the wait as a moment to breathe and relax for a brief moment. I'm sure if I did that, the wait would shorten significantly. I know, I'll call it a break, as opposed to a wait. That sounds much better. OK, I can go take a break now, while I....wait.

Jennifer

Workng Through the Overwhelming

It's been a very hectic week trying to get the web site optimized and get some cash flowing in. As I work I'm feeling more unsure and uneasy about my abilities to pull this off. It all seems so overwhelming; getting traffic to my site and getting them to buy, making time for more designs, checking emails and reading books on SEO, which is a little over my head at the moment. How will I do all this? Where am I going to find the time? It's overwhelming. My dreams are SO BIG and I have no idea how I'm going to make them a reality. I try and remind myself that anybody that has ever done anything, didn't know HOW they were going to do it, just that they were going to do it. I also hear that saying in my head that I so love to believe is absolute truth "Leap and the net shall appear". Of course when I get to the edge of the cliff, I start to doubt. I need to be clever and trusting like Indiana Jones, when he steps down in a leap of faith and lands his foot on solid ground. When he sees he hasn't fallen to his death, he then grabs out a bag of sand and tosses it onto the "invisible" bridge and all of a sudden it's presence is clear as day. If I could just find my bag of sand...........now where did I leave it?

I decided it was time to take a step back. Why am I doing all this? Answer: because I know I was given a skill and I know I'm suppose to use it. How am I going to do it? One step at a time, with some help. OK, where do I get the help from? No one I know has done this, so I can't ask them. Angela suggested we go on the internet and see if there were any classes being offered. We both started a search and I found a local place right away that offered classes. I called them and found someone to help. The man who talked to me does SEO for numerous companies. We talked for a bit and I could hear in his voice that he was a genuinely nice guy who really wanted to help us out. What a blessing-a guardian angel of sorts to help me sort through the information and finally understand this foreign land of selling online. I'm still feeling a little overwhelmed, trying to get everything done in a very limited amount of time, but at least now I have help. Maybe I've found that bag of sand. We'll find out tomorrow when we meet him for breakfast.

Maybe things are going to start lining up for us in ways I can't yet see.

Jennifer
www.castleberryds.com

The Mermaid and the Hummingbird

Here is a design I have been working on here and there for the past week. I will be working on the background next, and then the color. She is inspired by the Art Nouveau style that was popular at the turn of the 20th century. I love the curves and free-flowing nature of the Art Nouveau style. I included the hummingbird in my drawing because I think that they are very spiritual little beings. After my sister Betty died, I had a crisis that came up. I didn't know what to do, and I didn't know if everything was going to turn out OK. I said a little prayer and I asked my sister to let me know if everything was going to be be alright. I told her to send me a bird if the answer was yes. A few minutes later I opened the front door to leave. As soon as I opened it, I jumped back. I was startled by a hummingbird that was only an inch away from my face! At that moment, I knew I got my answer. As it turns out, everything was OK, just as she said it would be. Since then I have heard similar hummingbird stories from friends. I know they are much more than just a bird!

Angela

A Crash Course in Marketing

I've been very busy lately, but not so much with my art, which is why I haven't had a post in a while. I finally got my site up and I am now taking a crash course in marketing. I got a book that seems like it's about 3 feet thick on all the rules of Search Engine Optimizing or SEO as they call it. It's hard to sit still and get through it, but I'm slowly trudging through, knowing I can do a million new designs, but if no one can find them, what's the point? I'm fantasizing about the day I can afford to hire someone to do this stuff for me and I can concentrate on what I really want to be doing, which is drawing. I've got some new design ideas in my head, ready to go as soon as I'm done with the optimizing. I'm going to design a line for college student's dorm rooms, which I'm looking forward to greatly. I have several family members in college right now and did this design for my niece Tara. She doesn't actually live in a dorm, but isn't allowed to put up nails in her place either. It's a bit more contemporary than most of my designs, but still has a soft antiqued quality too it.

Jennifer
www.castleberryds.com

Witches!

It's my favorite time of year-Halloween and the decorations are in full force at my house. Skeletons are on the windows and doors, bats hanging from every possible location. I was even fortunate enough to have a couple of fires in the fireplace, which is rare for this time of year in California. We've been to the pumpkin patch and shopped for costumes, although I still don't know what I want to be yet. We've even baked a batch of Halloween sugar cookies.

All of the festivities inspired me to design a witch. Not just any witch, she had to be a pin-up girl. I've always loved the style of Elvgren and all the pin-up artists from the 40's, 50's and 60's. The techniques they used and the control they had over their brushes amazes me and inspires me to be a better artist. I had an opportunity several months back to paint a couple of Gil's girls on the wall of a friends garage and it was the one of the best experiences I've had as an artist. I learned so much from following in the master's footsteps and trying to absorb even a tiny bit of his genius. Of course he was probably turning in his grave knowing I was doing it in acrylic paint on a bumpy garage wall, but what can I say - it was still heaven to me.

The girl I have designed is but a mere shadow of what the true masters could do, but I'm very happy with her. She's in my style and I put in all the same love in creating her, as Gil did when he painted his girls. She's still in the process of being colored, but here's a bit of a sneak-peak at her. I wanted to have a seasonal line along with the regular stuff and I think she's a pretty good start.

Jennifer
www.castleberryds.com

A Great Quote About the Power of Artists

History has remembered the kings and warriors, because they destroyed; Art has remembered the people, because they created. - William Morris
www.castleberryds.com