Everyone, at some point in their lives, finds themselves at a cross roads. They have a decision to make based on which path they want to take. All paths are unknown and filled with uncertainty. There's always going to be a risk- that's just how life works. What you need to ultimately establish is, is the risk worth the end result? If the answer is yes, then you'd be silly not to jump in the deep end with both feet. Right?
Ever since I graduated from my degree, all I've heard is "Oh you're able to do what you want now!" or "The world's your oyster!" But what does that actually mean? My year group was the biggest to enrol on my course for a long time, because it was the last year before the course fees rose. So that meant that when we all finished, along with all the other courses and universities in the country, there were more of us going for the same jobs in the particular industry I (sort of) chose to specialise in. The reason I say say sort of is because my degree is so varied, I covered so many topics; Photography and Styling, Film and Animation, Marketing and PR, Forecasting, the list is endless! It's a gift and a curse for sure. My skill set and experience is so vast, which to some companies is very attractive in a candidate. However, my skills in journalism for example, may not be as in depth as someone who studied journalism for three years. It's all about finding the right role that suits my talents perfectly. But unfortunately for me, especially in this day and age, that luxury is proving to be next to impossible.
OK, fine, I'm only 23. But personally, life's too short to not do what you love every day. Even if it means taking that plunge into something that may go completely tits up, or might not pay as much or as regularly as a full time job in retail, for instance. Having said all that, we are living in the kind of world where we can actually be, well, greedy. Women are having careers first instead of families. So in theory, I can have it all! I can work in retail and get my regular income- plus do odd freelance bits on the side, like running my blog Simply Something and writing for other brands and websites. Or so I thought...
Which bring me (finally) to the main topic of this article- what is the deal with Simply Something? Now Simply Something and all it's little affiliations; Simply Something TV, Simply Something FM, the blog, the facebook page and twitter accounts. They're all great! I have loved working on them and using the name ever since its conception, way back during my first year A-Level Project. But honestly, I feel I've lost motivation and drive for it, and that's awful! More than anything I just want to have a passion for what I do, have hundreds of creative ideas surging through me. So much so that I can't get them onto paper quick enough!
So, let's back track to a couple of months ago when I decided that I needed a change. It all started when I was watching the TV programme Absolutely Fabulous (sweetie, darling!) on Netflix. I'd seen bits of it before, but this was the first time I'd watched it start to finish, all of the series. I loved it! It was exactly my kind of humour; slapstick, rude, very tongue and cheek. Plus, it was very British. It made me reminisce about how much I loved acting at school, making people laugh with my dark sense of humour. I then discovered that I hadn't felt that passion and drive to do something like that for a very long time. I've vaguely floated through life, getting up, going to work, sometimes going to the gym, coming home again, watching Netflix and going to bed. On the weekends I'd try to squeeze my friends in and some sort of social life, plus my radio show at the hospital. But even that was becoming a chore. Then I thought, 'when was the last time I posted to Simply Something?' Be it Youtube or writing, Simply Something had come to a standstill, so I knew it was time for something new. Which is how Mica Cupcake was first conceived.
I rang my old friend George, who I'd done an event for back at uni. We talked about my plans and h0w keen I was to make a really good go of it. He liked my ambition that I had for the subject, so he agreed to help me pursue my dream, as a kind of agent! He gave me tips on how to begin and questioned me on important issues that I still refer to even now! He made me realise that I'd have to start from scratch, scrap Simply Something *sob* and come up with a new name, a new concept- a whole new blog! I knew I would need help with help with all of this, so I enlisted an expert and dear friend to help me get started!
Paul Woolford was someone I met in the last stages of my degree, I had put some of my photography and film work into a local Art Trail event at Worthing Town Hall. He was another artist who exhibited his work, he's amazing at illustration and animation! We instantly bonded over Art, Japanese anime and other nerdy things, and have been fierce friends ever since. I knew I could count on his hard work and dedication, so I asked if he wanted to be my partner in this new project. He was aware of my old blog, he'd even written an article for it about Manga! So, naturally, he was keen to aid with brainstorming and eventually the web design and illustration. To be brutally honest, my website would be nothing if it wasn't for him!
So, the first job was coming up with a new name and concept for this new blog. George told me to come up with 5 or 6 possible names and pick the best one. Sounds easy right? Wrong. I struggled big time. I was so precious about Simply Something that I didn't want to Let it gooooo, Let it gooooo (oh dear). George was strict, though, and reminded me that this would only work with a fresh start. So begrudgingly I came up with some names. Well, quite a few actually. I knew I wanted to stay true to the Kawaii, J-style aesthetic, so I just needed another name that embodied my passion for that particular subculture. So I came up with a pretty hefty list of names.
But I could only pick one. I even asked a few friends with a liking of that style, who also knew me well enough: My neighbour Emily, my nerdy cinema buddy David. I even asked Paul which he liked. Eventually I settled on Mica Cupcake. I figured it's my name (duh) plus a symbol that is tattooed on my leg anyway! That equals a winner!
Paul instantly got to work on a little chibi character with a cupcake incorporated into the logo, and I instantly started researching online domains to host my site. I settled on Go Daddy, they were really helpful and I eventually bought what I needed. So Mica Cupcake was mine! Hurrah! I was instantly excited at the prospect of making my blog exactly how I wanted it to; and with the amazing talents of Paul, George, and all my friends and family, my beautiful Kawaii website is pretty much there!
The Buzz I feel for this blog, plus the inspiration its given me to write, is reward enough. If I can make it successful and gain a decent fan base, well, that's just a bonus really!
Comments