READER’S LETTER: Being a taxi driver can help realise your dreams
I have been a Liverpool taxi driver since August 2000. I came on the cabs because I wanted a job that I could work around my writing. I always wanted to be a children's author, from loving the Mr Men to Roald Dahl and much more, it was always something that I really wanted to do. The taxi trade has been hugely important to me because of the flexibility of working any 45/50 hours out of 168 hours in the week.
I have been able to write of day and drive of a night or vice versa. I started writing a children's picture book 'The White Bobbadus' in 2004 and finished my final edit in 2007. From 2007 until 2016 I had been rejected by 256 publishers (every single one in the
English-speaking world) and 171 agents (again every single one in the English speaking world).
In 2016 I approached an investment bank to see if they would create and publish 'The White Bobbadus' for a 10% stake in the project. They jumped at the chance and offered to do it for less. For me it was never about, and still isn't about, making a profit. It was only ever about trying to get children to read from a young age.
On 1 January 2022 'The White Bobbadus' was published through KDP and is available on amazon for £5.99. The quality is of a picture book of a much higher retail price, but I yielded on my profit to have a high-quality book at a really low price.
I have been into primary schools in Liverpool, reading to the children and having Q&A sessions afterwards. The children all seemed to have enjoyed the visits.
This has been a long journey, none of which would have been possible without me working as a taxi driver for 20 years.
