Marketing Self Again

Seems I've used this same topic on a post almost two months ago about marketing my Creative Blogging class. This post is about the local CRAFT FAIR we had yesterday. I organized a table for 5 local authors from our Heritage Writer's Guild to come and display their books for sale.

Photo of my friend Merrilee who is an artist and also sold some of her fun creations-quilted patterned apron-bibs and lovely artistic decorated family group charts. She is so creative and fun to be around. A friend indeed. We had a fun time visiting with one another and trying to market our own books and crafts to those attending the fair.

(See photo above l-r Lin, Beth, Russ, Marilyn and Betty-HWG President) I watched with amazement as one author friend Russ Estlack was very effective and sold 6 of his own books in less than 2 hours while some of us struggled most of the day, trying to sell just one book. This is how he did it, he made eye-to-eye contact with anyone passing our table and asked them a general question: "Do you read?" This was a hook to get them to slow down and come nearer to look at our display. Then he proceeded to tell them about several of the books on display ending with his own which is about the treatment of German Americans during WWII in the United States called "Shattered Dreams, Shattered Lives.

I learned much from watching him in action. One idea surfaced, I do not like to sell anything including my own books. But unless you have an agent or a book publishing company marketing your book, your choice is to sell or give them away. Then I got to thinking about how we all market our selves as we interact with others in our normal living. We try to sell our own value as a friend, teacher, etc. Maybe that is what blogging is about? What do you think? More tomorrow on that...

Learning More

about my father-in-law that I've never met, because he died before I married his son. Researching his life has been fascinating. He served in WWII in the Army Air Corps in the Aleutians. Bert Sr. joined the Army Air Corp, was trained in Shreveport LA Radio School, at Sioux Falls, SD, Gunnery School at Yuma, Arizona and served 9 months active duty in Aleutians during WWII as a radio operator, gunner, and navigator. (Analyzing his photo, he and my hubby could be twins.)

Bert Sr graduated from high school in Texas and enlisted in the army during WWII. He was soon far away from his new wife back home in Texas as he was stationed in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. He was serving with the Eleventh Air Force Liberator bombers patroling the Japanese sea of Okhotsk, west of the Kuriles. Serving 9 months in the Aleutians, flying land based airplanes over long stretches of open sea and in bad weather, being attacked by enemy fighter and flak, the Army Air Coprs had bombarded enemy targets in these north Pacific islands and did photo reconnaissance from Shimushu to Shimushiru. His son, my hubby was born while his dad was away serving his country. (Bert Sr.'s crew mates below, he is sitting on left.)

Bert Sr would be injured on a hard crash landing at his base and struggle with rheumatism in his back for the rest of his life. I've just discovered a website that will get me the info on that crash. They also will send photos of the plane he was a navigator and communicator-sitting right behind the pilot. (Below photo of B24D.)

Happy Second Anniversary

It's been two years since I started blogging with my friend Susi Q's support. Lots of water under the bridge since then. I love the opportunity for CREATIVE EXPRESSION it has given me to write daily my thoughts, stories, poems and anything that comes into my mind. It's helped me CONNECT with others in my family as well as make many new FRIENDS from all over the world. I've had the opportunity to TEACH several classes in creative blogging and family history blogs which have helped me stretch and learn more.

It's been fun to interact with those who leave comments on my daily posts. For those of you who don't, let me encourage you to say something once in a while. I appreciate your feedback on what I write, it's my PAYBACK for writing daily. You can comment as anonymous or if you have a google account, sign in and leave your reactions positive or negative to what I have written-I do appreciate it. THANKS!