I recently read The Burnout Generation (a freebie on Audible if you have a subscription). It was about Millennials and what they are struggling with in society. Highly recommended.
The author, like myself, started out as a freelance writer. Somehow she "made it" by getting steady work, being published (online mostly) and somehow eeking out a living. Just like I did in my twenties. She made an interesting comment, saying how her success was mostly due to being n the right place at the right time, knowing just one or two of the 'right people' and the rest was luck. Just like for me. The thing we had in common tho was an unrelenting, unstoppable drive that kept us going even when failue was all around us.
Her/my point is that her 'success' was unreplicatable, as was mine. The same holds true for my years in the adult business. Sure I can show someone how to do this or that but really each person has to find their own way. The key factor is desire and drive, and it sounds like Paul, after years in the magazine game, was burned out. He was older (in his fifties) and dealing with a changing technology and just didn't want to deal with it. Thus, retirement and any attempts at online success failed because his heart was not in it and he didn't work 20 hours a day 7 days a week to get somewhere.
No shame in any of that! Just the way it is for some people.
