Lemonade

I am reading Seth Godin's book called "The Dip". It's about quitting when you're accomplishing nothing (you find that you're traveling a road that ends in a cul-de-sac) and pushing through the dip (you have to read the book to get it) to attain your highest goals, and knowing when to either quit or push.

I read Seth daily and bought 2 of his books. His thoughts on the changing marketplace are fascinating to me, especially his view of the impact free technology is having on traditional business structure. He vilifies the record industry, but when I read his posts on the subject (try here and here) I substitute the words record/music with publisher/book. It's a dying dinosaur who's days of control are over.

Just like the artists who now sell their own MP3 downloads from their own websites, produced in their own homes with their own equipment (tolling the death knell for big corporate controlled music studios), quilt writers & designers go straight to their fans with downloadable patterns, YouTube video instructions, DVD's they made themselves and bypass the overcontrolling corporate publishing world. Cool.

My co-author wants to pursue organic fabrics and printing on recycled paper. I want to pursue downloadable patterns and instructional DVD's. Together I think we'll bypass the traditional structure and go straight to the quilters who want to see and hear what we have to offer. I'm looking forward to making some lemonade.