10 years ago I started my Twitter journey. Back then, I’d only really dreamed of having the numbers I have now as well as so many other cool things.
‘Join Twitter, build a following and share your writing with them…’
That statement is the narrow version of advice I found at the time and well, nothing worthwhile in this life is really simple or easy.
The truth is, I spent many years on Twitter not really knowing what I was doing or what I needed to do in order to reach people and grow. Everyone’s Twitter experience is unique to them and perhaps that’s what makes it special. You get back what you put in and social media is still quite a new concept viewed by many in a negative light but as someone who has spent an extended time on Twitter, good things can be found. That void you find yourself shouting into does eventually answer back because I am proof of that concept. In 2020 my following had crept to a moderate 3,000 or so followers. A year later it was 20,000 and during that time something happened, not just in the world but in my world because all I did was spend more time on the platform and with every tweet or interaction I learned. In my mind I marked what worked and what didn’t time and time again. Eventually and after that time, the needle began to turn and then eventually bend in my favor. People, good people began to notice me simply because I worked on my presence and what those people responded to.
Conversational tact and manners are all anyone needs to succeed on Twitter. You don’t need a gimmick or an act, you just need to be genuine and I say that from experience because for all the things social media is viewed as, most people look to it for an escape or to find others who are like them and if you do conduct yourself in a pleasant way, good things will eventually happen.
I couldn’t possibly sum up all of my experience on Twitter in just a blog post and those who do know me will also be aware of my many resources that delve deep into the intricacies of how to find success on the platform. While that success may be in the eye of the beholder, through my time on Twitter I have learned to reach people, keep people interested and even persuade them to buy my books and invest in me.
Of course I have returned that with my own support and as long as you can appear genuine in a sometimes volatile world online, you cannot be beaten. Supporting others is important to me and always will be.
Time. Our closest ally and perhaps most fickle of masters. Any creative will know that you need it for near enough everything and when it comes to books, time really is a friend.
This weekend will see the one year anniversary of Consistent Creative Content being released. The guide book that could and in that time has become the most successful first year for any of my releases. An ambition to create an honest guide for indie/self published authors and bloggers like me slowly burned inside over some years. I could go as far back as 2017 and recall sharing my book promotion results across social media to a positive response – and that is the basics in which this is all built upon. If something is well received, do more of it.
By the time 2020 rolled around, there came a realisation that perhaps some of the things I have learned could benefit others who are in different stages of their creative journey. What if I just wrote a guide that laid out everything I have done to publish books, promote them and of course everything I have learned as a blogger on social media? The concept above everything is a snapshot at providing some reassurance that fellow creatives are on a path to something representing improvement.
Being open and honest about my results, both good and bad has catapulted me to a following and success I’d never imagine. That might be what I am known for now and you’ll be surprised how being open and honest wins the day online these days and CCC represents that and much more. This book was the first project I’d written for others whereas everything else on my shelf was mainly just for me. At release, my Twitter following hit 10,000 and now a year later it is about to hit 30,000 which hopefully proves the methods in the guide book that I use daily actually work.
Initially the release was digital only and this was only because at the time my sales were mainly digital. Of course the pre-order run was kind of a revelation as it managed at least one order for every day of the run which was rather incredible. But after an outcry from readers, the paperback version arrived in December 2021 and then came the deluge of paperback sales – the lesson here is simple, if you don’t allow yourself to have the availability in the first place then nobody will buy what you are selling.
Through the challenges being a social media indie author represents, this book has succeeded in reaching some of those who could benefit from it. The reviews speak for themselves and are in a number that I’ve never seen in year one of a release. At the very core of Consistent Creative Content is a very important message and that is to be proud of your journey and achievements no matter the size or significance. You can find success you are happy with in both blogging and self/indie publishing as well as social media.
This generation of social media creatives is breaking barriers and carving their own path to success which is possible for anyone as long as you dedicate yourself and of course take the time.
You can expect some celebratory things this weekend including an exclusive narration of Consistent Creative Content over on my Patreon – this will be free to listen to. There will be a few other things too.
To all of those who have supported my guide book, thank you.
Time can be a rewarding thing. Give an author time and they’ll eventually give you the world or at least when they have stopped procrastinating. Give a Tweeter time and eventually they’ll figure out the platform because that’s exactly what I’ve done and that’s exactly what you need to succeed on Twitter. Succeeding on the platform takes many different forms from finding your crowd or community to eventually finding sales to some other awesome things. More importantly and to me its all about being content with your efforts and even though I am partially addicted to Twitter, what I’ve got from it makes me happy mostly.
The start of each year serves as not just my anniversary on Twitter but also the anniversary of when I announced myself as an author to the world. 22 year-old Lee Hall didn’t know much about being a writer back then, but he knew that he wanted to be one and he also knew even less about Twitter. Nine years later, that writing desire stands strong and for it I have seven books published, to me and probably just as importantly, I have thousands of Twitter followers. That following pushed me to be better and go further with my writing.
This is a post that will highlight some of my major learning curves on the platform with a hope it can help others.
Incentive is a word I use to describe what was missing in my Tweets during the many years of Twitter purgatory I found myself in. Specifically I’m talking about the odd link share and a random thought share routine I’d found myself in for the best part of five years. From 2013 to late 2018 I’ll happily admit my Twitter was nothing like it is today and rightly so because I hadn’t figured it out. From logging in every now and then to simply scrolling with a frown, like many newbies, I thought Twitter was a weird place, it might still be that but now I understand the platform, my view is little different. Twitter is something that requires no formal qualifications to figure out, spending time on the platform will eventually help.
Back to that word incentive because by the end of this purgatory era I finally realised the true power Twitter has if you can offer something to someone. From a simple question to advice, from a relatable experience to even a random conversational quip – If you give on Twitter, eventually you will find others that will embrace what you have to offer and more importantly engage with you for it. Late 2018 just happened to be when I began one of my most important endeavours as a social media personality and blogger and author, I started reviewing indie books. One fateful December evening I put out a tweet asking for indie book rec’s. The deluge that followed convinced me that reviews were in demand and my voice, even if it was a lot smaller back then had reach that could be amplified simply by offering to fulfil a need or have some level of incentive.
The tweet that opened my eyes to it all…
This tweet asking for indie book rec’s still serves as one of my most engaged, even now after reaching 20,000+ followers. It also paved the way for me to review 40 books in 2019 and connect with some wonderful creatives I still share my Tweeting experience with today. From then I have reviewed over a hundred indie books and that number continues to grow.
The next few years I spent on Twitter very aware of the potential it had and I simply got to work making a name for myself as an author and supporter of fellow creatives. Still a kind of post-purgatory loomed over me until April 2020 arrived and the gift of time was given to me. In an attempt to gain a readership for my still largely unknown Order of the Following Series I began to ramp up my presence online in both blogging and Twitter. Because the pandemic world had granted me more time at home, I could treat this career aspiration as an actual career and what started as a simple increase of presence, set me on the path to another realisation.
Presence is everything, being there regularly is everything and finding quality subjects to tweet aboutwas achieved by tweeting in quantity. Finding quality through quantity became my main aim even after this 4th book in my unknown series was released because the needle was moving. April 2020 saw around 3,500 followers and December 2020 would bring 5,000. During this important time I was marking in my mind what worked and what didn’t – I’d drop the stuff that didn’t and would do more of what worked, growth was constant and as long as my tweets inspired, informed, entertained or provided some level of value and incentive, I would succeed.
For my efforts, books began selling. In 2019 I would probably sell one book from Twitter every two weeks or so. By 2021 I would be selling a book or two every seven days. By 2022 I sell a book or two nearly every other day – this hopefully tells you that selling on social media is possible eventually and you can do the same.
January 2022 – normally a slow month was awesome!
From 2018 to now I’d spent a huge amount of time reading and reviewing indie books and it was earning trust from a constantly growing following. Plus and just as importantly, I was reading and enjoying these works. My Tweets focused predominantly supporting others on this author path and trying my best to find things we have in common – from sharing sales figures that would bring us closer to providing tips or promotional methods. All of this incentive focused content was earning the trust of so many others like me.
Earn a person’s trust and they will invest in you eventually. On Twitter the momentum will start swinging your way when you have something to offer and if you offer it regularly. That ‘something’ needs to be unlimited and never run out. It won’t be easy figuring out but it is possible. For me, authors will always need reviews, readers will always want new books to read and those like me in the industry will always appreciate experience based support. These three things are incentive based and pretty much limitless. Supporting others on Twitter is also free – there seems to be a consensus that supporting others involves a cost, even a simple retweet or a like is considered support from me and that costs nothing.
More importantly and probably above all I set out to make my Twitter a pleasant place to be online because you might do all of the above and still get pretty much zero interest because tone is everything or it might even be something else – nobody really knows how the algorithms really work. But get that tone just right and people will eventually want to engage with you – be open, be honest and be decent. Speak with others as if they were opposite you in the same room. Big opinions or anything that may stir passionate responses can very easily turn sour on Twitter so my advice is to keep it light. Just recently I saw someone express quite a strong opinion which proceeded to trend – that particular account lost half its following in a single day. While I strongly support free speech, I am also an advocate for using it responsibly. You’ll sometimes need a thick skin because people will approach you in all types of ways from the friendly to the less so.
Consistent Creative Content lays out my social media journey in detail
Social media gets a negative light sometimes for being a troll heavy, mental health draining waste of time but to me I have converted all of those negatives into positives by doing my best to make my Twitter a nice place to be. People are drawn to pleasant experiences and genuine people who are real. I want the book industry and self publishing to be a place where story-tellers can succeed no matter who they are, my efforts have rewarded me with thousands of Twitter followers, regular book sales and a boat load of supporters I call friends.
It took a while, but the journey and time was worth it. Social media does have a long way to go in order to be better at stopping abuse and trolls but for the most part, social media is one of the greatest feats of social engineering we’ve ever created. When its good it is incredible and generally most people want it to be good. That desire can stamp out the bad eventually and through being pleasant.
All of the things mentioned worked for me and Twitter is sometimes an individual journey of figuring out what works for you. Its okay to experiment and try new things on the platform, in that sense variety is sometimes key.
I do hope these words will guide you towards your own Twitter success and thanks for reading!
For some further listening, you can hear me laying out my author Twitter journey through a series of audio coaching sessions via Patreon. The first 2 sessions are free and for those who then sign up will access the rest of the series and receive regular shout-outs for them and their work on my Twitter.
For those who do follow me and support me on here and of course anywhere else including Twitter. Thank you. For those on that Twitter/social media journey like me, good luck and if you ever have a question about anything to do with it, I’m here.
Time can be a funny thing and it has certainly flown since I first envisioned and then eventually released my first book ‘Open Evening’ back in 2016. We’ve seen pandemics, two different presidents and even hardbacks being introduced to Amazon since this book came out.
For a story based upon a bad dream I had during my teen years it has shaped a huge part of me and my author journey ever since I wrote down the events of that nightmare onto six sides of lined paper. While it sat amongst many of my writings gathering dust for some years after, eventually it would be brought back into the light and served as my great writing reset while also being my debut novel and probably being my most important publishing moment to date. This post is dedicated to some of the vital things I have learned through releasing that book and my wider path as a creative.
Books capture a moment and version of you in time…
I am going to defend it jealously but I am also not afraid to admit that ‘Open Evening’ doesn’t contain my strongest writing – why would it? Because between then and today six other releases have arrived in that time. That’s six opportunities to be better than the previous project. Literally hundreds of hours toiling away figuring out my own style and the English language in general stand between my debut and now.
The story to me is still strong, but the execution, that’s something all writers will always be trying to get better at and so O.E. captures my writing ability at that moment in time. This is a book based in the US but written by a UK based author who has never been across the pond – words and phrases don’t always connect but I’m not going to change them for the world, this book represents so many things I’ve learned in time and those quirks make it all the more meaningful. There’s almost a charm in early works by some creatives and this book perhaps has a little of that.
Every time I have gone back into the manuscript files to change back matter or correct the odd error I find myself unable to change anything more than that. It represents me back then and I’m proud of that version of me in time. This also means that if you do read this book first and move on to later releases, you should hopefully see my writing ability evolve.
Truth in fiction resonates big time…
You’ll find that ‘Open Evening’ contains a huge dose of truth in between the monsters, the running and the terror. My own high school days play out in this book but with the fictional volume turned up. From geographical elements to even characters, much of this story is influenced by real things, people and encounters. For it, you get one hell of a resonating and relatable ride. If you are able to find some element of truth to base your own works on, you’ll probably captivate readers. Combine that with the sometimes outrageous fictional ideas and we’ve got ourselves an immersive tale. That ‘truth’ model is a concept you’ll find in all of my works so this book paved the way.
There are some fictional influences also…
From combining the name of my old high school with the town where slasher film ‘Halloween’ is based all the way to Alien, Buffy and even Blade. Much of my favourite thriller/horrors are also represented in this book and I’ve found that paying homage to them in a story gives readers a weird nostalgic comfort. If you liked Final Destination or any of the stuff below, you’ll probably like ‘Open Evening’.
Social Media Following is everything to me now, but it wasn’t always…
I had a fraction of the following I have now when this book was released and still it sold relatively well at the start.
41 copies – most of which were paperbacks got sold on release. This was a record I have only just broken in terms of release month sales. Back in 2016, Facebook was my main platform along with this blog which also had a fraction of the following I now have.
My advice when it comes to authoring and releasing books: You don’t necessarily need a big following to start off with because as long as that work of yours is findable, readers will eventually gravitate to it over time.
Me: I worked on regularly releasing content before I got anywhere near the social media following I have now. Content will foster new followers.
I got busy writing and spending the time I had to create…
Like I have said before, time is probably the governing factor in all of my content and success. When’ Open Evening’ was ready to be released, my editor wasn’t available and then so I had a year in lieu to use and that’s exactly what I did. Just as O.E. hit its release I was planning my next and already had a draft of ‘Darke Blood’ ready to be edited. 8 months later I had two books out there all because I used the time.
The Free Promo(s) have been worthwhile…
Many authors are strongly against giving their work away for free but I’m not many authors and for the six times ‘Open Evening’ has been priced at zero, thousands of people downloaded it. This has led to me finding an important readership and has even boosted paid sales of other titles over time.
Damn, getting reviews is hard…
I’ve tried near enough every trick out there to try and get more reviews and all of that started with this book. From sending physical copies to bloggers who never even responded, let alone left a review to giving copies to perhaps ‘higher end’ indie authors only to see that same copy on ebay some time later. Reviews are so hard to get and this book confirmed that for me. Since publication ‘Open Evening’ has managed 30+ reviews in that time. A small figure to some, but to me and considering I had very little following back at release, a good number.
It is never too late…
You’ll see me preaching this on Twitter every now and then but the release of a book is only the beginning and from that moment after, the opportunity for a book to find sales, reviews, audiences and a following is always there. It is never too late.
Edit: The official release was the 29th but it was uploaded to KDP early
Only you can write your book…
Writing tips and advice take many forms these days, from the awesome gems of guide books out there to social media, but only you the author can find what it takes within to write that book. It started for me with this fast paced high school creature feature horror but I have dabbled in many different genres while only really listening to myself and figuring out this wonderful craft.
Friends and Family were there for me…
As much as I am thankful for the support this book got at the very start, I will stress the word ‘were’ because after the release most of my family and friends disappeared. While back then it was kind of crushing I now understand that most of these people were supporting me and perhaps not the book which forced me over many years to go out and find my own supporters who backed both books and me. This became a blessing in disguise and I know some authors will never even get the acknowledgement from anyone they know for the work they have done so I am ever thankful for that initial support.
That initial support is how I promote myself today…
While most of my family and friends grabbed a copy of this book on release, they did so to support me personally and today that’s how I promote myself – as a person first and then my books second. Most of you reading this would have probably come from social media and might not have even read my works but you know who I am for that effort.
International pricing matters…
This is more of a practical lesson but for a while, my books never sold anywhere outside of the UK and this was mainly due to me not being fully in the detail about pricing in other countries. Be sure to do a little research just to see what is a fair price someone would pay in other places around the world.
Seek Professional Help…
My budget for most releases includes cover artists and editing – both of which to me are essential building blocks that make up the basic anatomy of a book. From word choices, structure and overall guidance; a good editor will help shape that work of yours. A good cover artist will also guide you – ‘Open Evening’ looks the way it does because of the professional help I got. The original cover I envisioned was way more elaborate but I know that those scratches embody everything I wanted to covey for a potential reader.
Keep Creating, Keep Learning…
The journey never ends and books once they are released will outlive us eventually. Books are a life investment and it’s important to learn what you can from releasing one into the wide world where anyone and anything can be said about it.
‘Open Evening’ represents the start of my publishing journey and for all it’s ‘charm’ this book is something I am immensely proud of giving to the world. There is something truly genuine about fostering a story from scratch and writing it with your heart and then offering it to the world; perhaps that’s the most genuine thing a human can do. To me, its certainly up there, so no matter what happens, embrace your art, learn from it, keep creating it and in this case embrace the unexpected.
For the first time ever all 7 of my books are being price promoted simultaneously to celebrate the 5th anniversary of Open Evening being published.
Without my debut novel nothing else would have followed and seeing as I have a plethora of books, they are all discounted except for Open Evening which is FREE to download today only!
Some thoughts, details and links are below. As always thank you for the continued support of your local neighbourhood indie author!
It’s kind of scary how time flies when your busy and trying to get the world to read your words and somehow it has been 5 years since my publishing journey began. Those who have been around a while will know in 2015 I basically started again with a project based partly on a bad dream and mostly on my own high school days of struggle. Add a little creature feature horror, scratch that, a lot of creature feature horror and somehow Open Evening was born. Originally taken from six sides of lined paper full of scratchy writing after my fourteen year old self tried to recollect the events of that bad dream, I somehow fashioned it years later, into a fully fledged book that probably means the most in all of my works.
Before Open Evening released in 2016. I kind of got caught up in the whole querying thing with sub-par science fiction that wasn’t ready and in truth I wasn’t ready so starting again paved the way to where I am now. Someday you might see that science fiction which has grown with me and I have a huge amount of books to offer the world but until then enjoy the ones I have available.
Some of the books on my shelf may be different in comparison but for today they are all the same price.
The Ghost Beside Me is a paranormal romance about an introvert who struggles with loneliness until something not of this mortal world tries to reach out. Based partly on my own paranormal experiences and a ghost story my late Grandfather told me its a short but powerful read. Perfect for the coming spooky season of Halloween and beyond.
The Teleporter, many of you will already know and this book has become my most successful title this year. With over 160 Amazon ratings in six months I think I can class it as a hit. Kurt Wiseman is a mid-twenties slouch who is suddenly thrown into his own super hero tale and has to make a choice in order to save the day. Full of comedic wit and fourth wall breaking fun, it is bound to make you laugh at some point.
Consistent Creative Contentis basically the culmination of my journey as an author, blogger and social media personality. Part-memoir part-guide, this book is designed to show you what I’ve done to find success that I am happy with and how you can do that too. Follow my words.
Of course Open Evening is just the start of a wider series known as the Order of the Following. Every other book in that series is discounted for today!
Writing books and blogging go hand in hand to me. They have done for seven years now and just last month I was notified by WordPress for reaching that milestone. Time flies I guess… This Hall of Information blog is the central pillar to all of my content and this post is dedicated to everything I have learned in that time. Before I dive in, let me just thank all of you, for joining me here in this space on the internet I call home. You support is very much appreciated!
Last year I put out a similar type of post which then inspired me to write a little self-help book called Consistent Creative Content. Here’s what I’ve learned in seven years of blogging.
Time
The major factor in all of this is time. If I could have incorporated that word into the title of ‘CCC’ I would have.
Blogging takes time, good results take time, finding content takes time… you probably get the picture. If you dedicate time to blogging it will eventually get better.
For those not sure where to start with blogging my basic tip would be to consider your blog as your own personal space to talk uninterrupted about any subject you wish. This brings me to…
Diverse Content – to a certain degree…
Many blogs including mine will stick to a certain theme when it comes to content. You probably won’t see a book blog talking heavy politics often and sometimes it’s good to branch out a little but my advice is to stay in the same content neighbourhood. While my Hall of Information blog started as a journey towards publishing that was fairly limited in what I could blog about. Since then my content has diversified within the realms of publishing. From indie book reviews to interviewing authors on occasion all the way to book promotion results and even just ramble posts that capture what I’m currently feeling. They are all in the same neighbourhood as my original vision but stretch a little wider in appeal. So perhaps trying new things is a good thing but…
New Ventures can take time…
Blogging for me turned a huge corner when I decided to take the plunge into offering Indie Book Reviews back in 2018. What happened the moment I launched that service? Nothing because it takes time to get the word out and build up a trusted reputation. Eventually indie book reviews became what I was known for but it started slowly.
This year I started another new blogging venture of offering space on my blog for guest posts and articles. Again hardly anyone applied but last month 8 posts were from guest authors who shared excerpts, their stories and even the story behind their story. Some of this stuff makes for great reading.
New ventures in blogging can take time but they’ll work eventually. In these two cases both offered an incentive. Incentives are the key to selling and now this month I have started a Patreon.As of right now the amount of Patrons I have is zero, but with a little more work I imagine some supporters will eventually arrive. There will be some more content soon, even some fictional stuff.
Leverage your social media following…
Those who know me over on the Tweet machine will know my following has pretty much doubled in the space of a year. If you have a loyal engaged following on a platform you can turn their attention to your blog and drive them to it – this is part of the reason why my blog gets so many views these days. But how, well, this leads to…
Know your audience and write for them…
In July of 2020 this blog had 63 click through’s from Twitter, this year it has 394 and counting. This is because now I write partly for that Twitter audience of writers and bloggers who appreciate my guides and reviews. This already galvanised my existing blog audience which was bookish to begin with. For those with a small audience or none at all this is a fantastic opportunity to write about whatever you feel, if it captures your personality, eventually it will resonate with someone.
Blogging Tip: If you blog with WordPress the social element of connecting with others is already there as everyone with an account has access to a feed that shows you suggested blogs to follow – this is a great way to branch out at the start.
Guest content still takes work…
After nearly a year of pushing a lot of my own content out onto my blog I kind of hit a creative wall. While I still have hundreds of guides to come from my many experiences, I took the plunge in offering space for guest posts on my blog which has over 850 followers. Plenty of authors have since provided me with guest excerpts, stories and reviews but even that takes work. While I might have outsourced the creative element in guest posts, they still take time to check, put together and schedule. There is also a fine art to spacing out guest posts so my audience is not too overexposed to the same thing…
All content all the time may not necessarily work…
Simply, if you want to grow and grow quickly in blogging then produce more content but too much content might have an adverse effect as readers read in their own time so if you are posting daily they might not be able to keep up. Last year and even recently I would post up to 6 times a week which is great for views but the content ranged from reviews to rambles. If you do suddenly ramp up content, be aware of how your audience respond and they will…
Listen to your audience…
I don’t get a lot of comments on my blogs but most of them come from loyal long term followers. They are my bricks and mortar and I do my best to listen to their feedback and engage with them. In blogging most followers don’t unfollow so a follower earned is a follower for life most of the time.
Blogging is a craft to me…
Like writing I can show you to the door and even set you up afterwards for marketing but I cannot physically teach you to blog. That is something you have to find within and working hard to get better will pay off eventually. Your audience may start small but they followed you for a reason, give them something to come back to every week or day. Its going to feel like you don’t know what you’re doing for some time but give it time and good things will happen.
My favourite saying in all of this is simple; If I can do this, then you certainly can. Here’s to many more years of blogging and thank you all for being here day in day out to support my efforts. It really does mean a lot. I have some more quick fire tips for blogging over on my Patreon which is FREE to readat the moment and can be found here.
Peace out, rock and roll and to many more years of blogging!
Its weird to think that a whole year has gone by since some of us thought the absolute worst was upon us. The end perhaps and maybe it was the end of ‘normal’ days before a pandemic gripped the whole world, captured our darkest thoughts and kept us away from one another.
The last twelve months have been a journey of emotion. There are those I know personally who lost the battle against a pathogen which didn’t discriminate, it just spread, quickly. My heart and thoughts go to the one’s we lost and their families. This has been a time I won’t want to live through again and even though I claim to be introverted I get my energy from being around others, real people, not through a Zoom call but through in-person interaction. I’m hoping soon that I can refill my energy by being around those I miss and haven’t been able to see.
This blog has done it’s best not to acknowledge these ‘times’ and for it there have been some wonderful moments of success that even extend to my writing career. Not only did the world change a year ago but I vowed to carry on through whatever and perhaps my situation allowed that, a fortunate situation and believe me, I know it’s worth. To release a book in 2020 was the biggest statement to fight against an era which did everything it could to rip our lives apart and the truth is, I’m a better person for it. Survival is a word that gets used a lot these days and maybe that’s all this was. Those who faced their own battles in 2020 and even those now still fighting the darkness of what unfolded, the sun is about to come up.
Truthfully and only for a short while this whole deal felt a little dystopian and deep down I was scared. It’s okay to be scared, it’s okay to be hurt and it’s okay to have scars. This era has proven how precious life truly is and what the relationships that mean the most to me are truly worth. Even the friendships I forged during this time online are precious to me. The followers on here and my other platforms kept that fear at bay and kept me going. People gave me hope through all of this. So as I take one hell of a deep breath to reflect, my thoughts are with the one’s who never made it through this, the vaccine was only months from their tragic departure. Life can be like that I guess…
This was going to be an Instagram post, but it deserves my best audience. Good things in this life are incredibly hard to find. Moments to be proud are too and even with everything that has unfolded this year from the depths of the unexpected, this milestone was always going to be celebrated. So let me tell you a story…
Ten years ago today I took a plunge into the unknown. Perhaps the biggest dive I have ever taken into the excitement of what could be. It was on the 21st of July 2010 that I first walked through the doors of the Iver Heath Drama Club a place that has always let me be whoever I want to be.
I’ve been to a lot of places, I’ve known a lot of different people. I’ve worked in different industries and socialised in many groups but I have never ever fit in anywhere like I have fit in at IHDC. This is the most important thing the club stands for; inclusion; something the world is always fighting for but something IHDC is ahead of the world with.
From being a performer which they always supported to writing their shows which they fostered and took on with care. To be a success in IHDC all you have to do is show up, embrace it and work hard – perhaps this formula can translate to success in all walks of life. If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t of ever had the confidence to realise my dream of writing stories and now after all these years, here we all are.
I don’t write shows for me, I write shows for them. And after all the time that’s seemingly flown by, and especially after what is currently going on in the world, good things like the Iver Heath Drama Club deserve celebrating.
Thank you IHDC, for 10 years of memories, for the shows, the audiences, the moments, the friends and family I now have. Hopefully soon we can all get back together and do what we do best, put on entertaining, fun and all inclusive shows for the community.
Lee's Hall of information 
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