Reflecting on the year and building for the next

The holidays have a way of making you pause and reflect. As this year winds down, I find myself looking back at a journey that started with simple curiosity and has grown into something I'm genuinely proud of. So, grab a warm drink, and let me tell you about theFineBits.

How it all started

My fascination with Ghost began years ago through my work at Doist. The company used to run its blog on Ghost, and I was immediately drawn to the platform's elegance: the clean interface, the focus on writing, the thoughtful design decisions baked into every corner. I knew then that I wanted to move my WordPress-based website to Ghost. I just needed the right moment.

That moment came in early 2024. I finally sat down to make the switch, but as I browsed the available themes, something didn't quite click. Don't get me wrong: there are plenty of beautiful Ghost themes out there. But as a product designer, I had this itch to create something of my own. Something that reflected exactly how I wanted my content to feel.

What started as "I'll just build a simple theme for my site" quickly turned into a much bigger adventure. I wrote about those early days, not knowing where it would lead.

Learning by doing

Building FineBits became my crash course in Ghost development. I dove into Handlebars templating, wrestled with local development environments, and spent countless evenings tweaking typography and spacing until things felt just right. The whole process was both humbling and exhilarating.

Later, I reflected on the entire journey: the design process, the soft launch, the beta testing, and yes, the thrill of that first sale. That moment when someone trusts your work enough to use it for their own creative endeavors? It's hard to describe how rewarding that feels.

The unexpected benefits

Here's something I didn't anticipate: this side project has made me a better product designer.

Running theFineBits as a one-man show means I handle everything: design, development, marketing, documentation, and support. It's a lot, but it's also incredibly educational. I've gained a deeper appreciation for the full product lifecycle, from that first spark of an idea to the ongoing relationship with the people who use what I've built.

The support part, in particular, has been unexpectedly fulfilling. Every email or message is a window into how someone is using my theme to share their thoughts, build their business, or launch their creative project. It's a privilege to be part of that, even in a small way.

When a support ticket becomes a product

Speaking of support, let me tell you how my second theme came to be.

A few months ago, someone reached out while considering FineBits for their site. They loved the theme's design but had a specific need: they wanted to create landing pages within Ghost. Minimal pages without the header and footer, something more suited for marketing or business use.

It was a reasonable request, but not something I could easily accommodate with FineBits without compromising its core design. The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized this wasn't just one person's need. There's a whole category of Ghost users who want flexibility: the ability to control the layout on a per-page basis and to mix traditional blog posts with standalone landing pages.

That conversation planted a seed. And from that seed, FlexiBits was born.

FlexiBits is designed for exactly this use case: a theme that gives you control over what appears on each page. Want a full blog experience? You've got it. Want a clean landing page with no distractions? Done. It's flexibility without complexity. At least, that's the goal.

I'm planning to launch it in early 2026, and I couldn't be more excited.

Introducing theFineBits

With a second theme on the horizon, it felt like the right time to build something bigger than a single product page. That's how theFineBits came to be: a proper home for the themes I create.

The new site features a Journal where I share tips, tutorials, and behind-the-scenes looks at how things come together. If you're curious about Ghost, or if you're already using it and want to get more out of it, I hope you'll find something useful there.

I've also set up a mailing list for those who want updates delivered to their inbox. No spam, no fluff: just occasional notes about new themes, helpful content, and the things I'm learning along the way.

Looking ahead to 2026

My goal for the coming year is to turn theFineBits into a place where anyone building with Ghost can find beautifully crafted themes and genuinely useful resources. I want it to be the kind of studio I would have wanted to find when I first started exploring this platform.

There's still so much to learn, so much to build. But that's part of what makes this exciting.

A holiday thought

The quiet days between Christmas and New Year's always get me thinking about fresh starts. Maybe you've been sitting on an idea for a blog, a newsletter, or a project you've wanted to share with the world. Maybe 2026 is the year you finally hit publish.

If it is, I hope our paths cross. And if you ever need a theme... well, you know where to find me. 😉

Wishing you a peaceful holiday season and a creative new year.