The actual story
The supplier mix-up. The overlapping AI subscriptions. The launch decisions. And two sales, because that is where this part of the story ends.
I Was Bored So I… · Book One
I Was Bored
So I Built a Store.
By Crystal Cottrill
I wanted a hobby. Now I have a return policy.
A technology leader builds a store with ChatGPT, discovers how many decisions fit inside “this should be fun,” and writes down what actually happened.
Buy on AmazonAvailable now on Amazon Kindle and included with Kindle Unlimited.
Competence was never the problem.
Stopping was.
This is the story of building Dopamine Alley: choosing products, untangling suppliers, making a Shopify store behave, and learning where ChatGPT helps—and where the decision still belongs to me.
The useful part
Lessons, field guides, and reusable prompts for sorting decisions, setting boundaries, and checking the work before it reaches a customer.
The human in charge
AI can help with the thinking. Taste, money, ownership, and the consequences still have a human address. Mine, unfortunately.
For curious builders, accidental business owners, and anyone who has ever turned a harmless interest into a spreadsheet with several tabs.
The series continues
Apparently, one hobby wasn’t enough paperwork.
“I Was Bored So I…” follows the things I build while they are still going wrong. Book One covers building the store. There is plenty of story left after opening the doors.
Book Two: the next chapter
I’m already bored again, which means Book Two is happening. The title and release date are still undecided. This is where I’ll share them when there is something real to announce.
In development · Release date to comeWant updates? Join the list. I’ll email when there’s something worth sharing.
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Already read Book One? Thank you. You are now unusually well informed about my decision-making.