The businessy end of the business

Once upon a time I loved doing web site design.  I wasn't really a pro at it, but I was an IT contractor and an IT instructor, and so I got into web site design to expand my horizons.  It was really enjoyable, and I got pretty good at it.  Once I'd done it a while, I found that I liked doing web site design.  Once I'd done it a while longer, I found that I tolerated doing web site design. 

I haven't done it in a long time.  Now, I find that looking at HTML code feels like someone is sandpapering my eyeballs. 

I only mention this now because I'm done with the draft of the novella I plan to publish, and am looking forward to getting on to the next one, but now, in between creative thrusts, I need to take a few moments away from writing to attend to business.  One of those is the task I've been putting off for months--getting a proper web site up and running.  Oh, I have a web space.  It's ugly.  There's a picture of my dog on it, and that's the most attractive thing on the page. 

I downloaded a free site template that doesn't appear to have any anti-commercial language in the terms of use, and so now all I need to do (*trumpet fanfare*) is edit a little HTML.  Only I hate doing it. 

There are countless little things an author has to do to make money, from what I read.  It makes sense; there are countless little things any entrepreneur needs to do to make money, and writing for money is just another business venture when it comes to those things--the businessy end of the business.  Set up an account, set up a LLC, set up a web site, set up accounts at the various partners with whom you'll be working, etc.--t's all necessary.  And for someone who gets off on creative exercises, it's all boring. 

There comes a time in any business when stuff like this--the creation and upkeep of a web site, for instance--is best outsourced to professionals.  If an entrepreneur makes money by doing anything other than editing HTML, then he's wasting his time editing HTML, frankly.  But that time doesn't come until the business actually has some money to pay said professionals for their work, and right now my business doesn't. 

So, back I go merrily skipping through text in Notepad, revising that famous index.html to make the template look like I want it to.