I'm Joe Parkinson I've run Aspidistra
Books, we are a small independent
bookshop based in the great northern
warehouse in Manchester we kind of focus
on politics history LGBT fiction
nonfiction we kind of tend to be a bit
more high-end art books stuff like that
but we also do things like give people
free cocktails and the bookshop is full
of like vintage furniture and so it's
pretty cool. Running a bookshop is
certainly not easy it's an experience I
used to have the two emotional
breakdowns a week phase I used to go but
um is it different from London I
couldn't really comment on what it is
like to run a bookshop in London I would
imagine it probably easier in a way
because you have to deal with the same
issues with publishers and stuff like
that but the cost of living is so much
higher in London so I'd imagine it's
probably a little bit easier and we've
got a really vibrant art scene really
loads that's going on in
the cultural scene in Manchester so yeah
I think it's probably a little easier I
wrote for my own personal amusement a
completely unedited diary which was
about a very specific point in my life I
was living in Barcelona I just come out
of a relationship and it was my feelings
about living in a foreign country
breaking up with someone who I really
cared about and then loads of stuff that
was going on the world Scotland's
referendum on independence, football and just
other just stupid things that anything
that came into my head for about six
months, I would just sit down write it and the
first the first lines are there are
okay so she's moving back to Australia I
have to I have to call her have to say
goodbye and the last lines we're just my
thoughts about her as a person and yeah but
I'm fine now don't worry I'm all right
now just be yourself a big personality
be as honest as you possibly can with
people and just if you have a really
great idea here's a genuine piece of
advice you are endlessly going to meet
people who are going to tell you that
there's you have no hope that you're
doomed and it's never gonna happen I'm
one of them and just just believe in
yourself and if you believe in yourself
enough and you go for it you'll achieve
it
