A couple of years ago I read Amanda Palmer’s fascinating memoir titled the Art of asking. I’ve been a fan of her music ever since the Dresden Dolls burst onto the alternative music scene in the early 2000’s.

Apart from being her own personal memoir the Art of asking also was an exploration of the nature of creativity and how to make a career out of it. Above all Amanda Palmer’s book shows creatives how to connect and find their audience and ultimately ask them to help sustain audience and creator in a relationship that enriches both.

I’m obsessed with the idea of making a living with my creativity.

Over the years, there has been an explosion of entrepreneurial creativity online, people use their skills to create objects that their audience love and find their own patrons.

Blogging off and on over the last decade, I’ve made many connections with my readers. I’ve answered every question, given advice and shared my knowledge.

While I’m on social media, I find myself greeting the same faces, conversing with the regular commenters, checking in on everyone during the pandemic. It's a new kind of friendship connection.

It’s a different kind of community that helps me to keep motivated and fills me with joy.

An excellent way of interacting is with Buy me a coffee which is a simple way of giving back.

It’s a one-off donation that I don’t feel guilty accepting, and that isn’t really a big deal. What’s wrong with buying a coffee for a friend every once in a while?

If you are not interested, just ignore it, but if I’ve helped you out, made your day, or you simply want to show your gratitude go ahead and buy me a coffee.

I’m going to try and keep showing up for you, despite the difficulties of these times and the usual lack of time and support.

I write for the love of writing, and I’m always happy it brings joy.

Here’s to taking one more step together towards making a living from my words which is my ultimate dream.

During the lockdown my work stopped, I was paralyzed by an initial fear of the unknown at the beginning of the pandemic. But eventually I shook myself out of the fear by returning to my creativity. Apart from writing, I also love art, reading and music. So I got out my sketch book which had been put aside for years and revived my love of self expression. It was my own personal therapy.

Then I thought why not share some of the things I’ve been making with my blog audience and so I started creating a zine, which is a self published book or magazine dedicated to my own personal interests to share with a small audience.

I loved the idea of making something small, personal and well crafted for those people who are already reading along with me on my blogs. It was an enthralling process, which I hope to continue regularly.

So one zine, dedicated to my photography in Sicily titled A Sicilian Mosaic soon turned into a second zine dedicated to poetry.

Trinacria poems is a collection of poems written during my time living on the enigmatic Italian island of Sicily. It’s about my own Sicilian heritage and the nature of this ancient place. It is also made up of original collage artwork which has been made using personal family photographs and material gathered over twenty years of living in Sicily.

Both A Sicilian Mosaic and Trinacria poems are currently available on Amazon.

I hope you enjoy them.