#012 ⤑ Where's The Year Gone?!
Last Mailout Of The Year And Plans For 2023
Dear Crew,
This year has been a big ‘finding our feet’ year for the fam and me as we’ve started to integrate back into life in London and Europe after being nomadic for so long. We’ve done a fair bit of travelling, and seen a lot of friends and I’m starting to really focus on building a new business.
So I wanted to say Happy New Year to all and share what I’ve been up to.
2022
I kicked off 2022 thinking I was going to focus on films and continue to take publishing as we always did - slow and easy. Fast forward to a couple of days before 2023 and I’m working hard with two partners, and a few freelance crew, and have a small publishing business with 10 books due for release in 2023.
What Happened?
The main script I was working on needed more time and development. I was (and still am) working with a great writer but as summer hit I realized the story we were working on is not my first feature - it could be a second or a third film, but it’s definitely not my first feature.
Autumn came around and the need to focus on books and real sustainability became strong. Films are lucrative but risky and as an entrepreneur, I can’t ignore the fact that over the last decade our books have sold well, we have a great network of supportive publishing professionals and a huge amount of artists to collaborate with.
So why not just go full in with making books?
Flipped The Script
Before our bread and butter were adverts, content, and motion design, always with the idea of moving slowly back toward film. Our side hustle when possible was making art books and artist-related services. But we got caught up running that ‘agency’ business and going in what we felt was the wrong direction.
Now looking at 2023 and beyond, our bread and butter will be books and the side hustle will be making films (when possible) and I’m happy to say we have no need for client work anymore which was always draining and unfulfilling.
The pressure to produce a script and secure a compelling and commercially successful film is now off the table which has freed up mental space. With that freedom, the ideas are flowing again. Ideas for books, documentaries, and fiction films and it’s all happening in a much more focused way.
New Studio Space
Another big change in 2022 is a new studio space. I haven’t had an office or studio since I was in Seattle at WeWork.
Shoutout to my studio crew who I’ve got to know since May this year.
Located in the heart of Finsbury park, Stroud Green side, Lydian Collective is a co-working studio made up of actors, composers, filmmakers, musicians, writers, and even a professional from the world of publishing. Lydian has been a great find and it’s helped me build consistency in 2022. I can see it being a great positive influence on me for 2023.
Plans For 2023
Everything is a lot more focused now - get our books out there and sell them. Improve the business, build the brand, and share more of what I’m doing. And if there’s time left, keep taking more pics and get that script finally written.
That’s it for this week, this year
What fabulous news about the book publishing! Can’t wait to hear more.
Onwards and upwards!