#curate your fandom experience and you’ll find yourself a lot happier

[vaaaaaiolet]

some of y’all have got to touch grass 😭

[not-xpr-art]

Art Advice #6 - Ways to combat social media fatigue as a creative person

Hi guys!

This week’s topic is something I think any artist who’s predominantly active on social media will relate to; that feeling of utter helplessness at trying to live up to social media algorithms, which can really impact your mental and physical health...  

I want to just offer some advice on how to feel less burnt out from art social media (advice I need to take myself sometimes)...

Ways to combat social media fatigue as a creative person (& how you can make social media overall a better place to be).

As I’ve already said, social media can take a big toll on your mental and physical health, particularly if you’re relying on it for your career (as a lot of artists and other creatives do). 

This blog post aims to offer some small pieces of advice to help make your life a little easier when navigating the world of art social media!

1) Algorithms are built to destroy creativity.

I think we’ve all had that phase where we try and keep up with the fast paced algorithms of social media that demand we produce new content day after day, as well as constantly interacting with other people’s posts and spending a minimum amount of time on the app. And all of this leads to feeling fed up and tired when you’re using that particular social media. 

For me, Instagram used to be such a wonderful place for sharing art. I met many amazing fellow artists, and the community that was formed their was genuinely lovely. Unfortunately, everything changed when the fire nation (Facebook) bought out the company & the whole site became so less friendly to smaller creatives. 

I’ve heard a similar story from a lot of artists, who find Instagram’s focus on excessive posting and engagement, which mainly rewards big influencers or celebrities and not smaller accounts of creative people, incredibly disheartening. The algorithms don’t allow artists to naturally explore their creativity, and it leads to more and more artists getting just completely creatively burnt out.

Of course, this all sounds really pessimistic, but it doesn’t have to be. For me, places like Tumblr and the newly created Artfolapp, which (although not perfect) offer a great alternative to the algorithm heavy apps like Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. As with all socials, there’s a huge element of luck that comes with posting art (timezones, audience, etc can all play major parts in how well your art does), but I always find places where posting doesn’t feel like a chore are a lot more enjoyable.

Alternatively, as simple as it sounds I think a great way to start approaching all social media is to not focus on numbers. Instagram actually recently gave the option of being able to hide likes on others and your own posts, which I actually think is a great idea! Once you become less focused on numbers I think you can breathe a little easier!

2) Numbers =/= Your worth as a creative person.

Following on from my last point, it can often feel like if you’re posts aren’t getting as much attention as you used to then there’s something wrong with the work your doing. 

Of course, this isn’t true at all, and most of us know this. Unfortunately if your posts are a part of your work, and the engagement they have is directly linked to how successful in your job you are (and how much money you make that week), then numbers are a lot harder to ignore. 

My biggest piece of advice for this is to visualise the numbers as what they are; people actually interacting with your work! So even if it’s only 1 person, that’s still 1 entire person who enjoyed what you posted! 

3) Luck be a b*tch, honestly ...

As previously mentioned, there is a lot of luck that comes with being successful on social media. Luck of posting in the right place at the right time, having one person with a bigger platform share your art, etc. 

So there isn’t a lot of advice I can give in this section. One thing I’d recommend is involving yourself in a particular community or fandom. Even if you don’t do fancontent, finding a community where you can meet like-minded people and support each other’s work is a really useful thing!! 

For fancontent (like fan art, edits, cosplay, covers, etc) you can just check out the tags of those fandoms! Even if it’s a small fandom, there is usually some content that already exists for it. Often by following a range of people in the various fandoms you enjoy can also lead to fun opportunities, like fan-zines or collaborations! 

For non-fancontent it can feel like it’s a lot harder to find people to relate to. One thing I’d recommend is to find independent magazines online which specialise in sharing creative works! This can offer great chances to get your work featured, as well as meeting some fellow creatives!

Basically, curating your social media experience to feature people that inspire you & support you not only makes for a more enjoyable time being on social media, but it also means there’s more potential your work will be seen!

4) Passion Pays.

Audiences often know when you’re producing something because you feel like you have to (perhaps it’s fancontent for something you gained a lot of followers from, or a particular style that you’ve done for a long time) rather than from genuine passion, and that can be to your detriment.

My advice is to do what you’re actually passionate about, even if that means that some people may not be as interested. For example, I gained a significant portion of my followers on other social medias from posting Kpop fanart. And although I still do this occasionally, I only ever really do it when it’s something I really want to draw. Even though I know I could churn out a lot of Kpop content that those people who followed me for it would really like, I also like drawing other things & going out of my comfort zone in art. 

And I know that the people who still follow and support me now understand this, and often appreciate that I draw things I’m unabashedly passionate about! It has also made me a lot happier overall with my own work, since I feel like I’m constantly pushing myself to do new and interesting things for me, and not to fulfil the interests of others! 

This can also include a complete turn around of the kinds of things you create, by the way! If you’ve been a 2D artist for ages, but suddenly develop a passion for 3D sculpture, then go for it! Those who are still interested in your work will stick around. As well as this, you’ll grow an entirely new audience with the new creative outlet you start sharing! It’s honestly a win-win situation, and don’t let the fear of people not accepting the change hold you back!

5) TAKE BREAKS!

Possibly the most important piece of advice in this post is to remember to take a break from social media! Even if it’s something you rely on for your job, and the algorithms demand you spend time on them, try to take periods of time during your day to switch off from it. 

Another thing I would also suggest is taking breaks from posting things. I did this in January because I wanted a break from forcing myself to live up to the hell of a posting schedule. I still did art, but without the pressure of having to post things I was able to take time and have a little more fun with it! 

A final thing in this part that I’d suggest is taking breaks from doing creative stuff occasionally. If you’re anything like me, you probably spend nearly every day doing or at least thinking about creative things. And that can become very tiring! Whether it’s taking a week, a few days, or entire months, remember that your creativity and skill aren’t just going to disappear if you take a break from it for a bit! 

I think creative people tell themselves that if they don’t keep posting, then people are going to stop supporting their work. But in my experience, people stick around even if you haven’t posted something in years! Because if someone enjoys your work, then they’re going to stick around regardless! 

TL/DR

Basically to sum up, social media can be hell to navigate with it’s obsessive algorithms and posting schedules. But if you allow yourself to adapt to other sites/apps that don’t rely on those things, don’t fixate on numbers, curate your experience to both be inspiring and supportive, let your passion shine through, and remember to take breaks, then social media can become a lot more enjoyable! 

I hope this post was somewhat helpful to anyone who struggles with this... I have to admit that I often don’t take my own advice in regard to social media, but I thought me posting this could help both of us out lol!

Check out my other Art Advice posts here if you’re interested!

[secondsister-a]

The Hella Sweet Munday Meme // ACCEPTING     ↳ @graunblida​ said: What if i sent you all the munday meme symbols? 👀

I can’t believe you’ve done this. Under a readmore for length.

♻ Any advice on improving Tumblr RP experience?

The faster you learn to not care about other people and only do this for yourself the happier you’ll be. It’s not always easy, and I struggle sometimes too because I’m a very competitive person, but lately I’ve let myself just float between blogs wherever I’ve felt like being, doing my drafts at my own pace and it’s way less stress and made things much more manageable. Also dash only is a godsend. 

⛅  Do you believe aesthetics are another form of expression?

I mean yeah? Although I think some people do it because they feel like they have to. I’ve had people say to me they HAVE to follow the trends and aesthetics or else they feel like no one will write with them. Which is a shame. But I’ve never felt that kind of pressure so I just do what I want with mind. I think they’re fairly moderate as far as aesthetics go. 

☮ Are you feeling happy and inspired right now?

Kind of. I feel inspiration but I don’t have a lot of energy, unfortunately. It’s difficult for me to muster up the will to write after work when all I want to do is sleep lol.

☄ Has someone ever admitted to being inspired by you?

Surprisingly yes!

⚌ Who inspires you?

Oof pretty much everyone I follow. For someone specific though I’m gonna @queensloyal​ bc I was reading their threads earlier and thought their prose was really lovely. 

♋  Are there any FC’s you believe should be used more? Why?

Not really? This is the first fandom I’ve been in tbh that was more real people so I’m not well versed in faceclaims and who is/isn’t popular. 

☸ Do you reblog from the source when someone practices reblog karma or do you follow it?

Personally I don’t see why people get so upset about it, but I only reblog memes from people if I can send one in. Otherwise I’ll reblog from the source. I don’t care if they reblog from me though. 

☯ Do you believe you’re a forgiving person?

Depends on what it was for. Slight annoyances I don’t hold grudges for ( and I’ll let people know if I they did something that upset me ) but I’m not one to let people treat me badly so. 

⚑ Have you been forgiven for a mistake you’ve made?

Yes.

♛ Have you ever seen drama be maturely sorted out?

I don’t think I would have seen it if it was sorted out maturely lol.

♞ Do you tend to ignore drama?

For the most part yeah. Although I admit to being nosy. 

☾ Have you ever tried to bring peace to a situation?

When it involved people I knew personally, yes. Otherwise I wouldn’t try to get in the middle of things that aren’t my business. 

☻ Have you ever made someone a promo or a positive shoutout?

Yes!

☎ What do you think about bias lists?

They’re nice. I’m always surprised when I’m included.

☈ How many people would you say likes you?

Probably a good number. 

♡ How many people do you like? Are there any people in particular that pop up?

So many people, @bleachsthetic @graunblida @fifthbornforrester @forcemetry @ordersurvived @twinwestars @sensedechoes​ ...... many more.....

☢ What calms you down after negativity?

Idk if I would say it calms me down necessarily but really the only thing I can do is go on an anger rant in private lol. And get it all out. 

☠ What keeps you happy?

The illusion of productivity. 

☘ Is there anything that makes you instantly want to follow someone?

Uhhh they know about JFO, they’re pro-Jedi, they HC their female muse as a WLW

☕  Is it often you hear people complimenting your blog? Characters, writing, theme, icons, etc.

I wouldn’t say often, but it happens sometimes :)

☂ What’s your best RP experience?

I don’t know, I’ve been rp’ing so long and all the different fandoms I’ve been in  have had their pros and cons. I really enjoyed my stay in the Bleach fandom though with @bleachsthetic​. 

☐ What trends are you currently into?

I don’t think I’m really into any current trends? Unless you count the banners a trend lol. Writing wise I’m pretty much just bopping along doing whatever. 

★ What fandom do you consider welcoming?

Steven Universe fandom was the most welcoming fandom I’ve ever been in, although this one was pretty warm too. 

☆ What are some the perks with the fandom you’re currently in?

There’s different corners for the different parts you’re interested in. There are the prequel muses and sequel muses and original trilogy muses, depending which one is your favorite. Some are more active than others, but at least they’re all at least moderately active. And most people have AU’s for different eras. 

☉ What fandom do you believe needs improvement? What could you do to do that?

Tbh, I couldn’t say; I’m not involved in a lot of other fandoms. But speaking from experience in big fandoms, the only thing you can do really is curate your experience. People are gonna be annoying and problematic. Block and move on. 

♦ How has roleplaying on Tumblr improved since you started out?

In some ways. I think its a little bit slower than it used to be, but more in depth. So I suppose it’s a trade off. 

♨ Have you ever roleplayed with someone that has been problematic but offered critique and then watched them improve?

Uhhhhhh no. I’ve modded servers before and had to tell people why they were problematic but they just sort...of left and never improved lol. 

⚓ Are there any small details you tend to like in roleplays?

I love when there are opportunities to include head canons in actual threads, whether it be mine or my partner’s.

⚡ What are the good sides with duplicates?

Finding someone who likes the same character. JFO is a pretty small portion of the fandom. I actually don’t really see anyone writing Trilla actively atm. 

☀ What’s the best thing about roleplaying?

Meeting new people and making friends :)

⛵ What genres do you like writing the most?

Just like...random slice of life and also shippy things. 

☺  What tends to bring out your muse the most? What inspires you?

Talking and plotting ooc gets me excited to write and inspires me to tackle my drafts.