Good news first, I followed through with the storytelling event last night!
I realized one thing after it was over, the event despite being worthwhile, and enjoyable over all I get the feeling that I am not seen in the same way as others there. Much of that sense is likely to be my assumption of what is thought of me by the public in general based on past experiences, but not all.
This feeling of “I don’t fit, these people’s don’t seem to understand my experience of life.” Leaves me wondering, is the effort I put forward to build an audience effective? On the one hand, I’m building name recognition, and when I have my book out, name recognition may be enough reason to purchase it. On the other hand, my story may not jive with this group’s life experiences, it may not resonate.
In the end I don’t know either way. And I’m not willing to rule anyone out. What I have to say may resonate for reasons I don’t know, or not at all. I choose not to be a divisive person who lives in an “Us V. Them” world. I have seen the fear and anger in that world and I won’t be a part of it.
As far as community activities to raise my profile, I’m going to work on letting go of my preconceptions of what others think about me. I’m going to keep jumping in and reaching out .
SickyBeat 