301k in debt and morbidly obese - things aren't great!

Igamogam

greenbee wrote: »

BTW - car boots are usually worth the pitch fee if you are organised and have everything carefully packed up so you can display it easily. It's probably worth going along to your local one for a look at what sells well. Don't take stuff that would make money on eBay though. I found it good for getting rid of the real tat... Old car radios, clothes and shoes not good enough to eBay, glasses, crockery, cutlery, pots and pans, tatty cushions, rugs and throws, half-burned candles, half-used nail varnish... So it's kind of last stop before the tip...

Kei wrote: »

i put a sign out for 50p an item and almost the whole rail was gone by the end.

I'm with MrB re car boot sales - cant stand them from a selling point of view and I have given them a good go but have decided its not worth the effort to be organised and packed carefully etc etc because even with a 50p 'price tag' the b00gers still beat you down then you see it on their stall at 3 x the price:eek: No I am an occasional moocher but will never be a seller - maybe its just the sales in this neck of the woods;) TBH honest though if its the last stop before the tip then thats where it belongs. I have sold part used perfumes and cosmetics on Eb*y for silly prices before now - almost the full price:eek: so a few pence at a CBS is not worth the hassle, the early morning and the grumpy punters - like I said might just be round here:D

MrBloater

Amazingly have had a NSD - which considering it's Easter Sunday and entailed a trip to deepest Kent so the little uns could see their English grandparents is quite an achievement. In fact, took MSEing way past its logical conclusion and practised downright theft in liberating 2 bottles of wine from my mother. Have 3 slots left on eBay - will have a proper look around tomorrow to see if there is anything left of value that I can utilise the free listing weekend for, but, unless there's a hitherto untapped market for secondhand Rod McKuen LPs I can see a lot of the shed stock disappearing somewhere into the yard sale / car boot / charity bag / tip vortex.

Have also had a wake-up call regarding Kindle sales - not that I have ever really considered fiction writing to be a credible career move. But I was shocked to learn that on the current royalty rate I would have to shift over 5000 e-books a month just to cover my mortgage payment. That's unlikely to happen seeing as total sales since October so far are at 46!

Firewalker

MrBloater wrote: »

Have also had a wake-up call regarding Kindle sales - not that I have ever really considered fiction writing to be a credible career move. But I was shocked to learn that on the current royalty rate I would have to shift over 5000 e-books a month just to cover my mortgage payment. That's unlikely to happen seeing as total sales since October so far are at 46!

Good! Step in the right direction - although the situation with royalties and sales was the same in November. Now the time has come to start thinking about ways to use your writing skills to make money. I did mention copy writing before but you will have to do this one on your own again. BTW, this doesn't mean you should stop writing fiction - but keep it for fun and recognise that any income from that is initially small, may stay small and is difficult to predict.

Good luck and hope you are having a great Bank Holiday.

Firewalker

MrBloater

Not sure there's much demand for an inexperienced copywriter in today's climate. Having witnessed the lengths one of my mates has had to go to since returning to these shores (and he's got years of experience in the game) out of the thousands of cold calls he made to potential clients, his only regular gig is turning out to be with the UK subsidiary of a company he worked for before.

In brighter news, due to a family and house wide massive tidying blitz that has been going on since 7am, I found an old vintage computer of mine which contrary to my inital belief does actually work and so shoved that on eBay with a starting price of £49, and found an Adam & The Ants sun visor - you can't put a price on a piece of pop history like that. Well, I did, at £10. So it's time to sit back and watch these items soak up the bidders!

Igamogam

MrBloater wrote: »

Adam & The Ants sun visor - you can't put a price on a piece of pop history like that. Well, I did, at £10. So it's time to sit back and watch these items soak up the bidders!

Well lets hope it 'stands and delivers' Mr B

patman99

MrB, have you thought about signing-up to a few book review sites (assuming such things exist) using a made-up name, then reviewing a few books (making-sure to include yours in the reviews)?.

Vintage computers are only worth what someone will pay for them. My dad has a Dragon 32 in original box with games and controllers. According to an expert in the newspapers these are worth £150, according to completed sales on eBay, they are worth £15-20.

sylwright

So glad to see you back posting Mr B. It's not the same without you.

I have been selling all my unwanted goods on ebay and am amazed what people will buy. I read the forum on here about the strangest thing you have sold on ebay, and just followed the advice on that and now I list almost anything, and amazingly a lot of the time it sells, if you relist it often enough.

I agree with you about car boot sales, too much hassle for very little return. At least with ebay you can do it in your own time and you don't have to fight people off your goods before you even get them out of your car, which is what happened last time I did a car boot.

Anyway Mr B, just keep doing what you're doing and you will get to where you want in the end. I always keep in mind the saying "if you always do what you've always done, then you'll always get, what you always got". Works for me when I resist change.

sylwright

Just noticed I haven't updated my signature with my weight loss and money saving results for a while. I think I'll hang on now until the 23rd April, which is my end date and do a full update then

Firewalker

MrBloater wrote: »

Not sure there's much demand for an inexperienced copywriter in today's climate. Having witnessed the lengths one of my mates has had to go to since returning to these shores (and he's got years of experience in the game) out of the thousands of cold calls he made to potential clients, his only regular gig is turning out to be with the UK subsidiary of a company he worked for before.

It will take time but it is doable. Also, starting a niche blog may be an idea. Feel free to PM me on some of this.

FW

custardy

MrB,been thinking about this.
re: the fitness
nobody at wok/local you could meet on a weekly basis for a run/walk jog or whatever?
Im using a PT now (bloody expensive but worth it for my post OP rehab) and the weekly seession keep me on track for the rest of the week.