Here we are, final day of April. The last few days have been filled with a familiar bit of dread in our house, as Rob has had the dining room table covered with bits and pieces of paper. Yes, the tax deadline is here.
 
The spread-out papers aren’t really familiar to me; Rob used to get all of this done while I was across the street in our radio studios from 5 am to 9 am. Money in, money out, you might say! But last year we found ourselves in a different province from the one in which we’d always filed taxes, a lower income bracket from the one we’d been in for so long, and facing all kinds of changes as we stepped from one life into this new one.
 
But we got the taxes done and they’re ready to efile today. (I say “we” as if I had anything more to do with the weekend’s efforts than simply keeping tea made and sitting quietly reading my Michelle McNamara true crime book about the Golden State Killer.)
 
Moving into this new life, we did two things on Saturday night that you might find interesting: I secured the URL MourningHasBroken.ca (as well as MorningHasBroken.ca, in case it’s misspelled, which is possible) and the Twitter account @mourninghasbroken, so that when the book comes out in February, there will be more ways, more platforms on which to reach potential readers.
 
It’s all very exciting and was sparked by a dinner Rob and I had on Friday night with a man you may well know: marketing and ad guru Terry O’Reilly, host of Under the Influence on CBC (and via podcast, a great travel companion when you’re in the mountains and can’t get any radio at all) and author of the fascinating best-sellers The Age of Persuasion and This I Know. Terry was in Victoria to speak to a group about marketing their message, which is exactly how we met him last year: I was emcee for three events for the Canadian Real Estate Association and Terry was one of the guest speakers.
 
When I was foundering a bit and missing the media business, we had conversations that sent my brain into sparking overload. A radio veteran and marketing legend, Terry had written books that had already been published, while I was in the midst of just getting my feet wet. He was generous in sharing his experience with me, just as he was with Rob and me on Friday night over dinner. 
 
He shared some ideas and tips (such as the websites and Twitter handle) that will hopefully help me to get the book out to more potential readers come next year, and he also offered some insider perspective on what I might expect from the publisher in terms of marketing. He offered encouragement too: while many authors would rather stay in the shadows once a book is out there, I’ll be the one who’s got my hand up, offering to join a lineup of speakers, or to sit for a book signing at a neighbourhood store. So, get out there and sign, speak and meet readers!
 
Rob and I have a lot of time, we love to travel this great country of ours and we have every intention of sharing the message of this book – and our lives – with anyone who’ll listen. If they happen to spend a few dollars on a ticket for a speech or on the book itself, so much the better, right? We’re so grateful to Terry for his enthusiasm and encouragement throughout this process; when you’re sticking your neck out and hoping for the best, it really does a soul good to hear that this is the right path. And by “this,” I mean keynote speaking.
 
So that’s where we are now: planning for what will be a busy 2019 and paving the way for the future. Even if that means more receipts and pieces of paper spread over the dining room table. I’ll just keep making tea. Appropriately, these days it’s the CBC Radio blend from Murchies. Cheers, Terry!
 
Have a gentle Monday and I’ll talk to you tomorrow.