An Update of Affairs

Howdy folks! I am, in fact, not dead, just apparently not super into blogging for the sake of blogging, especially not in the rather rigid, scheduled format I started posting with. It turns out, trying to come up with unique writing tips and curated lists on a weekly basis is hard to do while pursuing an engineering degree and running a side business in the middle of a pandemic.

I twice started long posts only to abandon both posts as drafts. One of them was about the books I read in 2020, if that tells you anything. Blogging, it seems, is not my strong suit. I would caution you, reader, to not get your hopes up that this update post means more content will be coming… but who, really, can say.

An update on Possum Paper Works

I’m pleased to say that Possum Paper Works the business is stronger than ever. In the last few months, though I’ve mostly ignored this site, I was accepted in to two different markets held by local community print shop Studio Two Three. Over these two markets, particularly the second, month-long Winter Market, PPW did amazingly well.

Before the market, I cranked out about 55 notebooks over the course of 15 days. The photo above shows all of the stock I initially supplied the market with. I thought for sure it would be enough. It sure looks like enough!

It was not. The Richmond community turned out in force! And rightly so–the market was filled with amazing works from local artists. After just the first weekend, I was emailed with a request for more stock. I ended resupplying twice, making 26 additional books total and adding multiple pre-made books. Somehow, I sent exactly 100 books to the market. Only 12 returned.

I’m currently in progress of listing the remains of my stock to Etsy. I also got a new printer for Christmas, so keep an eye out for potential lined(!) notebooks and guided gratitude journals in the future.

An update on me

Public universities are a disaster. But I’m graduating in Spring, hallelujah.

I learned the hard way in July why they say to keep the plastic guards on paper cutters. Luckily it was not bad enough to warrant a trip to the ER. It was, however, a useful lesson.

I’ve started intently following stationery blogs. The Well-Appointed Desk, The Gentleman Stationer, The Pen Addict, Pencil Revolution, and Comfortable Shoes Studio have all led to me buying more pens and pencils than fully necessary. If PPW notebooks aren’t your speed, Johnny at Pencil Revolution has started making leather-bound notebooks which are worthy of your eyes. If you need ideas for what to write in the books, I recommend checking out my previous post!

Until next time, whenever that might be, write on, folks!