Allow Me To Introduce Myself (on Substack)

My first post

When people ask me what I do, I say one of two things.

I either say I’m a writer, or a writer and publisher.

Ever since I discovered the joy of climbing, I’ve been putting the pen to the paper. I became a publisher out of necessity, when I couldn’t find a publication to publish my work, I published it myself.

Looking back, it’s wild that my independent publishing began in print, with zines, in 2007. I published zines before I ever published online.

There are many reasons to be pessimistic in these modern times, but the state of publishing is one thing that keeps me optimistic.

In another era I could have been a “starving artist” but because I’ve been able to cultivate and grow a passionate audience, I am able to make a modest living with my art.

The Climbing Zine and the Dirtbag State of Mind podcast is kind of like the Grateful Dead in the early 1980s. Not famous, or known in a mainstream way, but for those that know about it, they love it, and they support it.

Entering Substack is an experiment for me. When my dear friend Greg Pettys recommended I get on the bandwagon, I replied that I wasn’t sure if I had the bandwidth. It’s hard enough to keep up with The Zine, the podcast, social media, and everything else. But the old phrase, “the more you do, the more you do” popped into my mind. I’m always writing, and like when I started publishing zines, sometimes there’s not always the right outlet for a certain piece.

So, I’m here seeing if Substack can help enrich my writing, and connect with people.

Thanks for reading and let’s see what happens!

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