For all of 2019, Marti worked on a comic that journals her attempt to do #NoShopping for the whole year.
No shopping was a high bar, but she definitely was able to minimize her shopping. Her struggles and recaps are hilariously captured in simple drawings that are sometimes informative, sometimes revealing and never boring.
Below are several pages from the beginning of the book.
Find the book on amazon.com here.
Professional Reviews!
From Pines and Peaches
"In a myriad of self-help and minimalist books, Taming the Shopping Bug is a shining gem! Not at all condescending or preachy, the author approaches a year of #noshopping with humor!" (read full review here)
From Midwest Book Review
"...a graphic book that chronicles Ms. McGinnis's year of mindful shopping. It is illustrated with cute graphics that carry a serious message. She also brings in some of the psychology of why we shop and feel compelled to over-consume products. She also talks about her "Need-O-Meter" with which she filters potential purchases. This is a great guide for those not quite ready to Marie-Kondo their lives but wanting to cut down some." (more books reviewed here)
The Official Book Trailer
Q&A with Marti McGinnis
Why did you write this book?
I have wanted to do a graphic novel for a long time so when I got the bee in my bonnet to severely limit my shopping for a year I thought the info would be best portrayed in this way! In fact I tried to do NO non-essential shopping for the year, but I failed - which is all documented in the book.
Why is it in black and white?
I knew many Kindle readers can only handle non-colorized interiors, and I didn't want my Kindle readers to get the short end of the stick on that. Also print copies are less expensive this way for the print-on-demand outlets I wanted to use.
Why cartoons?
Cartoons are great at portraying somewhat 'dry' info in a much more digestible form. Plus it's rather who I am as an artist.
Top lessons learned?
It was very revealing to discover the history of recreational shopping and just how much Americans have been 'trained' throughout our lives to consume stuff as a way of life.
Has it changed the way you shop? I absolutely LOVE how younger generations are not falling those same habits and are starting to entirely recreate how we should think about consuming things. I was delighted to learn so much about the NOwnership trend and experiences over things habits.
Would you do it again?
In fact the #minimalshopping habit has really become ingrained in my behavior. I absolutely did buy some frivolities when my year was up, but I haven't fallen back into old habits. At all. A truly unexpected benefit!