Monthly Newsletter - FIRST!

The NorthWesternBelle

Issue 1

November 2017

Welcome to my monthly newsletter! This is the first one, obviously, so it's probably going to look different than any other ones to come. I have been planning on doing a newsletter for the last six months, but could not find the time to design what I wanted it to look like. Which brings us to the first bit of news:

I am now unemployed!

For the first time in my adult life, I am not employed. I worked for the same company for nearly 12 years; in fact, they let me go one day before my 12 year anniversary date. So, without 40+ hours of someone else's work to do, I have the time to focus on my own. Is it terrifying? Yes. But, it's also exhilarating and liberating! I am excited for the opportunity to truly focus on work that is fulfilling and satisfying.

So, this month is going to be about pottery! When I saw my instructor in class last night, she was very supportive and encouraged me to come work at the studio as much as possible. I asked her about becoming a kiln assistant, because I would love to learn how to operate it. She was very interested in that, and is going to look into it. It would be so great to be able to get a better understanding of how the studio operates, and all the ins and outs of the pottery process. I've been doing it for nearly a decade, but I still don't know some of the key things I'll need to run my own studio, like glaze mixing and kiln firing. So, I'm excited for that.

I am also going to start selling my pottery, which is something I have avoided thus far because I don't feel like my pieces are good enough to sell. I have gotten some interest on social media recently, though, so I think it's time. I would like to start attending craft fairs in the area as a vendor. This is an idea I have had in the back of my mind for quite some time; it stayed back there because I didn't see how I could make the time for it. Now, that's not an issue, so full steam ahead!

In the mean time, I am going to refocus on efforts to promote The NorthWesternBelle. One of my dear friends has already requested crochet socks for her family's Christmas gifts, so I'll be doing that in November. Hopefully I'll have some other orders! If y'all need anything crocheted or handmade for the Holidays, let me know ASAP! Processing time is no longer going to be complicated by my work schedule.

With all this newfound time I will also be writing a bunch. Writing for fun was hard for me while I was writing for a living. Since that's no longer the case, I feel much more free to do it, and I am going to roll with it! I've already started a new journaling project to catalog my new life post employment. Once I get that built up a little I'll start publishing it on the blog. Part of my new strategy will be to get on Patreon, so I'll be producing exclusive content there as well as maintaining the NWB blog. You can expect at least one blog post per week.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for your love and support! The fact that I have such an amazing network of friends and family is what makes unexpected unemployment a lot less scary than it could be. Stay tuned for more information about my comings and goings than you ever wanted.

~The NWB