Goblin Treasures

Something I’ve picked up doing as an adult is finding the joy in small trinkets. Whether it be a silly mushroom candle holder, or a duck-shaped nightlight. I also find joy in making my own little trinkets, especially through whittling nowadays. Whenever I look at all the little treasures I’ve collected, I smile thinking of how I came across them or who gave them to me. It’s just a little ray of sunshine while going about the mundane. However, I think memories are beginning to become my newest treasure to my collection.

After publishing A Journey Paved in Shadows, I was a little aimless in what to do next. I’m still overwhelmed by the thought of marketing my own work. I am trying to find balance between editing the sequel, as well as writing other projects in the works. All that to say, the excitement of publishing was quickly overshadowed by the piling workload. Thus is the way of life. However, in the midst of my stress I still took steps to keep A Journey Paved in Shadows active, and even asked a few local bookstores if they would like to carry it in their stores. Then the holidays progressed and I focused on family and friends for a little while. Fast forward to January 29th. I was out with my mom running errands and decided to stop in one of the bookstores I asked to carry my book. I hadn’t heard anything back from the store since I had asked a month prior, and was just planning on following up with their interest. You can imagine my surprise when I told the woman working in the shop the name of my book, and she informed me that it was sitting on their shelf at that very moment.

The memory of finding A Journey Paved in Shadows on the shelf at Walls of Books in Parma, Ohio is one of my favorite treasures now. I was speechless, and reality didn’t hit me until later when I got home. From the time I decided to become a writer, having my book in physical stores was always a dream. I’ll never stop collecting my little goblin treasures, and hopefully I’ll never forget the joy they first brought me.