off and on over the past many months, i noticed a huge feeling of resistance to the idea of selling prints. it just didn't feel like me, and i kept wanting to remove prints from my etsy shop altogether.
this seemed rather puzzling. i thought i wanted to offer prints, but clearly something about it felt wrong.
one day, i realized the problem. i'm not offering prints in a way that is fun for me. it feels rather like i have turned my prints into a widget and i am the assembly line. of course that's not exactly what is happening, but somehow it's missing the same light and playful spirit that is present with my cards and postcards.
my resulting epiphany: it's not enough to love the thing i'm offering. i have to love the process of offering it as well.
i want to bring that light and playful spirit back. i want my print offering to be full of surprise and delight and joyful anticipation. for me and for you.
so, here's what's going to happen.
at the end of august, all of the prints currently in the shop will disappear.
at the beginning of each month - starting in september - i'll add a set of prints to the shop. my sense is that it will be between one and five. there may be a theme. (oh, who am i kidding; of course there will be a theme!) the sizes and prices will depend entirely on the prints.
at the beginning of the next month, those prints will disappear, and a new set will take their place. it's entirely possible that a particular image may show up again someday; then again, it may not.
it's a wandering collection of prints!
oh, the fun. i am so excited to play with this, and i hope you enjoy it too.
isn't it amazing how the 'joy quotient' is the measuring stick for how we live and work in our lives. if we're lucky enough to follow it, it usually is the best and truest way.
i still think a little book by you on your year of trust would sell. you have a gift for writing and making one feel what you feel.
but... only if you found joy in putting it together!!
Posted by: tammy | 08/18/2011 at 06:22 AM
glad you found a way to make it fun! i'll be excited to see each month's set & theme, because you know how much i love themes! ;)
Posted by: Helen | 08/18/2011 at 08:04 AM
I really love this idea; it wouldn't have occurred to me to think about the 'how' as well as the 'what', even if I wasn't 100% happy about the how. It's making me think differently about my Etsy shop too, so thank you. :)
Posted by: Tara | 08/18/2011 at 11:30 AM
sounds like a fun idea for you
( and us )
Posted by: Ann Bimberg | 08/18/2011 at 01:13 PM
I love this idea! I was selling prints for a while and then decided to stop. It just wasn't doing it for me. This new approach you're taking sounds almost like a game. A hide-and-seek photo game. Wheee!
Also, I love the photo on this post. It is *so* quintessentially Northwest (and this is me hoping that photo actually WAS taken in the Northwest).
Posted by: Kylie | 08/18/2011 at 02:22 PM
Like a farmers market - presenting whatever is in season!
Posted by: Kris | 08/18/2011 at 02:41 PM
Elizabeth, as usual I like your thinking here. I have had the same problem, not wanting to even sell photos at all any more because the "process" is not fun. Meantime, I like selling cards, magnets and bookmarks..... This will definitely give me some food for thought! Good luck with your new approach!!!
Posted by: Patty | 08/18/2011 at 04:29 PM
It's gotta be about the joy, right?! I like your re-think strategy on your shop, Elizabeth. Selling one's art isn't always easy for many reason. But to have joy all along the way during the process makes it more worth while. I know for myself now with a new, different shop at Etsy the joy is so there--and it wasn't always so the first time around. I LOVE your idea of a kind of one-woman, one collection show each month, mixing it up! I can't wait to see what you'll be offering. I've greatly admired all you've had in your shop already, and with some more added joy--it's gonna be MAGIC! LOVE you photo here today. Much food for thought, as always--thank you, my friend. :o) Happy Weekend ((HUGS))
Posted by: Tracy | 08/19/2011 at 01:45 AM
oh sounds absolutely fabulous! I am getting closer and closer to opening my Etsy shop. And the funny thing is I have a bunch of photo cards and a bunch of prints that I can sell...but I've been having a funny feeling about selling these as well. Almost as if I don't actually really care to sell them...but I want to open a shop...because that's what I've been telling myself for years now...that I want to open a shop. Is it possible to just open a shop with nothing in it? haha! oh well, I'll figure it out.
Posted by: kate | 08/19/2011 at 09:40 AM
@kate: of course you can! i know you'll figure it out perfectly. :)
@tracy: MAGIC! ;) so glad the joy is there for you with your new shop. it seems very much aligned with where you are right now.
@patty: thanks! it is definitely giving me food for thought too (what? i can care about the process too?).
@kris: eeeeek! i love that analogy! you are a genius!
@kylie: it is indeed! it was taken on a trail in the gorge. :)
@ann: i hope it is!
@tara: you are welcome! here's to all of us enjoying both the what and the how. :)
@helen: hehehe. i do indeed. maybe i will name a collection in your honor: the collection that shall remain themeless. lol.
@tammy: thank you for the idea! i do want to do a little book with atlas stories and photos eventually. ummmm. if i can narrow the stories down. this gives me other ideas.
Posted by: elizabeth @ retinal perspectives | 08/19/2011 at 06:16 PM
What a great idea!! I can't wait to see the collections!
Posted by: Sherron | 08/21/2011 at 07:01 PM