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Since book sales are now through the roof and have started a steady-Eddie trend, I can now sit back a bit and enjoy the fruits of my labor. However, people like me never totally sit back; we are always creating and looking for new outlets. I have already finished writing my first non-fiction book (which will be out sometime next year) and I am also 25% done another fiction (also due for next year). Nonetheless, I have reached a lot of my goals earlier than expected and have far exceeded my wildest dreams on this journey of independence and freedom. People don't seem to understand that the majority of indie authors are lucky if they sell twenty copies in their lifetime. I accomplished that milestone during the first few months of starting my own writing career from the ground-up. I now sell, minimum, 20 copies every 1-2 weeks; and I have only been at this for 2 years!
The most important thing an artist or creator can do is always be moving, always be making things better and improving on your craft and brand. Recently, we here on the blog started the proud tradition of grading and evaluating Female-Teacher Sex Scandals (FTSS). It's one of the those projects that is, not only fun-as-fuck to do, but a nice break from writing the books that are currently queued up. With that said, when I started that series, I stumbled upon a custom photo that someone had done for a certain teacher-sex scandal that had multiple pictures, overlays and layers. It stood out. Here is the one I created for our intro to FTSC(Female Teacher Sex Scandals) using free software:
It's far better than those cut & paste ones the mainstream news outlets use; the ones where the accused's photo is mirrored in threes and blurred on the flanks. Where is the heart, where is the creativity? So, as always, I told myself that, "I can do this better". And at the time, in general, I really wanted to make my blog thumbnails more engaging, personalized and original. So, I opened my browser and searched for online Photoshop sites that could do this sort of magic. I normally use PicMonkey, which is OK, but it doesn't have the features needed to make truly eye-popping graphics and custom pictures. The best sites that I found were: Pixlr, Foto, and Befunky. The best part is that they are all free and cost no subscription to use!
Now, each one of these sites I have found have a forte. I mainly use Befunky for graphics and layering multiple pictures(which is the most important tool). Pixlr is great for effects and adding graphics. Foto has some decent effects, graphics and fonts.
The point is, you can create some truly inspiring pictures that capture the atmosphere, vision, and theme you want to present; and you can do all of this just by using simple and otherwise, boring pictures. For example, the picture below is only made up of two photos, but with the use of layering, overlay techniques and some effects and graphics, it is something of a transformation.
The photo above is really just these two pictures below:
We really do live in amazing times and anyone today can achieve greatness, if they work hard enough. That's the key word: "if".The sad thing about modern times is that the vast majority of people squander and misuse the great tools that we have been given by smart tech nerds out in California. The internet is supposed to be a freedom tool and if used properly, can allow a person to own and operate themselves, instead of having to work for a fuck'n boss and make other people money; and ultimately make them happy and you miserable. The internet is the new economy. The internet was not made so that you can jack or jill off all day to porn, or to the illiterate masterpiece that is, 50 Shades.
It was not made for you to upload your stupid, and otherwise, worthless selfies that take absolutely no creative instinct. Sites like Pixlr, Foto, and Befunky's sole purpose is for creating art and discovering new ways to make something simple, absolutely amazing. They weren't meant for you to make yourself look 110lbs vs. 170lbs, your boobs to pop, or your skin to be clearer than the crater fuckhole that it is; all in order to try and seduce (under false pretenses) Chad the quarterback at your high-school; so that he can come over when your parents are out and blast force into your entitled gulch.
The internet is the gateway to independence from the corrupt and toxic nature of the modern workplace and CorporateLand; where everything is rigged against men and where only the stupid and conformist fakes get ahead (or if you're the bosses bang-buddy, son, daughter or another family member. CorporateLand, though, will soon be dead as we go forth into the future. Thank God.
East Coast publishing houses are also on the way out, as they keep churning out shit- books because they are mostly written by some publicists spoiled nephew, or ditzy daughter. Thanks to Amazon and the internet, the world can now enjoy all the real writers and artists out there, who's work twenty-thirty years ago would have never seen the light of day, or would have never had a chance to get in front of their audiences.
So, to all the East Coast publishing houses, the haters, the worthless and untalented, I just want to say that you can all kiss the biggest, blackest, most vein-filled, fly-ridden dick and suck my sweaty asshole while you're at it too.
It's hilarious because, "big time" authors who go through these "big" publishing houses get peanuts in royalties after the publishing house takes almost everything after marketing and all the other behind the scenes expenses. Indie authors get to keep 70% and we get to write what we want, when we want, and how we want. East coast publishing houses are going the way of Sears and outlet malls. Amazon and other online retailers are king. We now have total freedom to be creative thanks to the E-economy.
It just takes a bit of time and work, along with research. Most people today though seem to like taking dick-pics or sending their baloney-bouquet photos to Chad, and that's fine. Just don't whine and cry when you find out that you're just an average normie; who may have had the potential to do something great with their life if only they used their time wisely.