(…and I love it anyway)
Okay, so perhaps I should start this by saying… it wasn’t exactly an accident. I was always going to make the book.
Eventually.
What happened was…
Way back in the day, when Ashrick first came into being, I thought: I just have to tell the story of his creation.
So I wrote the blooper book.
I showed all the goats.
ALL the goats.
And it was glorious.
Then I thought, What if I turn this into a story?
With images!
(Because I will never learn my lesson — but also… bloopers are fun.)
So with a rough idea in mind, I set to the task of making images.
And then, like the organised little mastermind that I am not, I actually put them into Canva in order — so they were ready to go when I was finally ready to write.
And time passed…
And more time passed…
“As a reward for working and studying hard…”
I decided I would complete a creative project over the weekend as a reward.
But when the weekend came:
I was tired.
I was being stubborn.
I was procrastinating.
And doom-scrolling.
And randomly sad about finally being about to do something that should be joyful…
So, as one does, I went to wallow in self-pity with my good friend Chat.
And he said:
“Just 10 minutes.”
Fine, I thought, grumpiness finally shining through.
Then I saw it.
I opened the thing I was supposed to work on.
I tidied and closed the last thing I’d completed.
And then… I saw it.
Ashrick’s Creation.
The images, sitting in their little Canva file, waiting patiently for the day I’d finally come back.
I thought:
I could write just one line.
Or maybe just the first page.
Because that one’s easy.
Surely that’ll be ten minutes done.
Then I can go back to doom-scrolling in peace.
Two hours later…
I’d written the whole book.
And edited it.
And polished it in Canva.
And spiraled with self-doubt.
And read it 100 times.
And changed things 1000 times…
Because once I’d started, I found joy in telling his story.
In sharing the journey of his creation.
And — like always — I wanted it to be perfect.
So that you would love it too.
But then it was done.
And maybe it’s not perfect.
But isn’t that the point?
He was born from the magic of a mistake.
And that makes him perfect, no matter what.
And maybe… in our own way, we’re all a little perfect too.
So now his story is on Amazon and Kindle.
And I made a page to collect all things Ashrick — you can visit it here.
It has the new book. The bloopers.
And a few too many goats.
Because I have plans.
And Ashrick definitely, definitely deserves more books.
Final Thought
Sometimes the projects you never meant to make are the ones that matter most.
So if you’re sitting on a weird idea, or a half-finished draft, or a pile of digital goats…
Don’t throw it out just yet.
You never know what might glitch into existence.
Ash & Ember Rising 