The $1,000,000 question

Do you know what the answer is?

Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash

Last week, my kids were giving me no small amount of stick about how little my writing exploits are worth financially. Adding fuel to the fire that my wife occasionally prods with a big stick.

I’m sure it’s something you all come across from time to time.

Why do you spend so much time doing a thing that doesn’t make any money - over spending that time with your family?

And constantly I go over the usual benefits of mental health, happiness, the need to create. We all know it’s not all about money.

But it still is a bit. And that’s nothing to be embarrassed about. We have to eat, right?

I don’t want all the money. I want enough to live on and travel the world, in return for delighting a small but devoted fan-base with my words and pictures.

That’s the dream, folks.

Smart cookie kids

My eldest daughter says “Why don’t you just write something and charge $1,000,000 for it? Then you can retire and spend more time with us?”

Before I can say easier said than done, my youngest pipes up with, “Or you could write 1 thing and charge $1 for it but sell 1,000,000 copies?

Hmm. She could be onto something here…

Of course, we’ve all heard some variation of this question I’m sure, and discussed the pros and cons of each approach til the cows come home.

But she really set me thinking: what amount of writing is considered worth $1? And while people happily throw $5 or more at a posh coffee, why do they find it so hard to throw $1 on something to read?

I guess the answer to that is that writing and pictures on the internet, by and large, are free. Or, we pay with information, or attention. If I watch a 30 second video, it still doesn’t make posh coffee come for free.

Like hundreds and thousands of other people, I’m looking for ways I can monetise my writing and my writing skills.

And I often go through that risk/reward process in my head and ask myself if I’m wasting my time before I even start. So, I can often write off good ideas before I’ve even given them a chance to breathe.

That’s why I’m still coming back to my Movie Deaths project and trying to inject new life into it - because I believe in it. I think it’s a good idea and I just have to find the right people to read about it.

But right now - I have a new idea which is nudging my brain. And I think it might be a fun social experiment to try out. What do you think of this?

I’d Buy That For A Dollar

I could create a brand new newsletter called “I’d Buy That For A Dollar”, where I could offer for sale a bunch of ‘micro-favours’.

These are services that you might normally ask a friend to perform, but from me, you’ll get a whole lot of extra value packed in for that $1. And you can hold me accountable, something we often struggle to do when we ask friends for favours.

Short, sharp tasks - completed to perfection, by a fellow human, so you don’t have to think about them.

These could be things like:

• write up to 150 words of prose or poetry on any topic

• proof-read/edit anything up to 500 words

• offer written feedback on a piece of work no longer than 500 words

• find/create an image on a theme

• sketch something

• create a graphic/logo/digital artwork

• a buddy to bounce ideas off

• character names for your stories

• offer a bespoke writing prompt

I’d prefer tasks that align to my skillsets, but I’m open to other suggestions.

Nothing illegal though.

While you might think - why would I pay $1 for something ChatGPT could knock out in a millisecond? I have a distinct advantage over A.I.

I am an actual human being offering human solutions to things you might be struggling to get your head round. I’m not looking to rinse people of their dollars. I’m looking to make connections doing something fun, while I earn an honest living helping fellow readers, writers and illustrators!

The newsletter would give a shout out and exposure to whoever buys a micro-favour, and be filled with stories of some of the weird and wonderful ones that I’m asked to do.

All the while, I could document how much time they take me and how much money I make from it. Subscribers might be entitled to offers where I can build genuine connections and offer even more value!

If nothing else, I hope it might be fun and I’ll meet some new people doing it!

Let me know whether you think it’s a good idea - and tell me what help YOU need that you’d be willing to pay a dollar for!

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