The tour guide said we were about to visit a sculptor’s studio.
I wondered why an artist’s studio would be tucked away in the recesses of Volterra, Italy. Wouldn’t it be better to situate the studio in a high-traffic area?
We rounded a corner and found ourselves in a small, open courtyard framed with green foliage and bathed in warm sunlight.
“Here we are,” the guide said.
The studio was cramped, containing three rooms filled with beautifully crafted alabaster sculptures. The artist, a smiling middle-aged man, greeted us in Italian.
He was standing beside a window, surrounded by his tools, expertly shaping an alabaster bowl. White dust covered everything.
We watched, transfixed.
There’s something sacred about the studios of artists and writers. Maybe because they’re sanctuaries of creation.
I learned that the sculptor (regrettably, I lost his business card) is well known in Volterra and beyond. He has plenty of clients and collectors and doesn’t need to situate his studio in a high-traffic area. If anything, he prefers the solitude of his secluded, creative refuge.
He struck me as a man well-ensconced in his creative work. Happy, making a decent living, and fulfilled.
Doesn’t that sound wonderful?
It doesn’t work for me anymore
Recently I received an update in my Instagram feed from a writer and online creator I follow. A few years back, I took a three-day workshop from him and learned a lot about online writing.
The two-word title of his post instantly caught my eye.
It said, “I quit.”
At first, I thought the startling words were clickbait to draw readers in. But turns out, he really is done. He’s leaving social media.
Because he’s fed up.
He shared that social media doesn’t feel good to him anymore. That it doesn’t make sense anymore or align with anything that he wants his life to be about.
He also wrote:
I’m leaving social media, because it doesn’t work for me anymore. The only thing keeping me here is the idea that maybe, at some point, it’ll be useful again. But really it just brings out the worst, laziest, and most jealous parts of my personality.
I’ll wager there are a lot of creatives out there who feel the same way.
We dutifully scroll through social media feeds, post our work, like and comment on the posts of others, and repeat this never ending Groundhog Day ritual.
Why?
For many creatives, we know that social media means exposure for our work. And sometimes we get inspired by the work of others.
But honestly, after a while, even the work of my favorite artists, photographers, and creators starts to get a bit redundant.
Sometimes even stale.
I’ve always believed in savoring the moments
When I was a kid I fell in love with the fantasy artwork of Frank Frazetta. Every time I visited a bookstore, I scoured the art section to see if there was a new Frazetta book.
There was no Internet or social media back then. We had to wait for our favorite artists, writers, and musicians to put out new work.
The same was true of our favorite TV shows. No binge-watching the whole season. You had to wait for the next episodes. It gave you something to look forward to.
Somehow anticipation makes the things we like more enjoyable. When they finally arrive, we savor the experience.
Nowadays, we don’t have to wait. We’re inundated 24/7. It’s all about instant gratification. Fresh content. Feeding the algorithms.
I’ve always believed in savoring the moments. In the end, they are the only things we’ll have. ― Anna Godbersen, The Luxe
If Frank Frazetta were alive today, he’d probably be stressing himself out posting the latest drawings and paintings. It’s a good thing he was into cameras and photography because he’d have to start filming videos, to placate the Instagram, YouTube, and Tik Tok gods.
When the pressure is on to constantly post, the quality of the content is bound to decline. But that doesn’t matter, because it’s all about exposure. If you don’t post regularly, the algorithm will ignore you, and then no one will see your work.
In many ways, social media breeds mediocrity.
The cream rarely rises to the top
The Internet is a crowded place, and social media is drowning in millions of desperate voices, all trying to garner attention.
To stand out, people do outrageous stuff.
The more shocking and weird, the better. It’s not about depth and quality, it’s about capturing short attention spans.
As a result, the cream rarely rises to the top.
Some of the best writers and artists I admire have limited online followings. They’re too busy crafting deep work that’ll stand the test of time long after the bikini-clad influencers and conspiracy theorists are forgotten.
Consider the brilliant Anthony Doerr, whose beautifully written novel “All The Light We Cannot See” won the Pulitzer prize. Netflix plans to make a limited series out of his book.
Doerr has just over 8,000 Instagram followers and around 24,000 Facebook followers. Respectable numbers, but nowhere close to the millions following gamers and influencers who create unmemorable, often shallow content.
Still, a lot of earnest writers, artists, and creatives dutifully post their work. Often, the response is crickets. They feel like they’re shouting into the void, and no one is listening.
We’d be wise to remember that popularity doesn’t always equate to quality.
He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how
If you want to stay sane as a creative person, start by asking yourself why you create.
He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how. ― Friedrich Nietzsche
If you like to see pictures of yourself online, and you create work merely for attention or money, chances are you’re going to be miserable. Because the thing you’re feeding isn’t a creative muse but a lonely, insecure ego.
True writers, musicians, and artists are all about the work. Their joy begins first and foremost in creating. They do it whether money follows or not.
Yes, there’s a place for marketing, advertising, and social media to promote one’s work. But all of that should be an outgrowth of the work, not the work itself.
If you love the work you’re doing, but feel like you’re shouting into the void with your online posts, perhaps you need to narrow your focus.
Corner the local market
I know a realtor who loves what he does. He’s so talented and tech-savvy, he could be a real estate expert on CNN.
But instead of shouting into the void and chasing a national audience, he became a household name in his own backyard. He decided to corner the local market.
How?
He created a website and social media pages devoted entirely to the small city he lives in. Using his video skills and engaging personality, he interviews locals and showcases businesses, local politics, restaurants, schools, and events.
He has a personal real estate website, but the way he became a household name in his city was by celebrating the community itself. Now he’s not only the top realtor in his town, he’s also liked and respected for all he does to showcase where he lives.
I know an accomplished photographer in Auckland, New Zealand who has a website and Instagram page devoted specifically to where he lives.
He regularly visits businesses and shoots entire series about their work. He’s honing his photography skills and becoming known as a famous photographer in his area.
Consider the New York street photographer Brandon Stanton. He started a photography project in 2010. The goal was to photograph 10,000 New Yorkers on the street and create a huge catalog of the city’s inhabitants.
Brandon’s effort led to the website Humans of New York, which eventually went viral online. It has led to financial success and many other photography projects. But it all started with Brandon’s love of photography, and cornering the local market.
If you’re a photographer, artist, or writer, what if you focused your efforts locally?
What if you did a photo series on interesting people or establishments in your town? What if you pitched amazing essays about your community to the local media? What if you painted local scenes and sold them in tourist spots and coffee shops?
If you corner the local market with your creative work, you stand a better chance of developing a following and making interesting connections. All of which can lead to unexpected opportunities.
That’s what the sculptor in Volterra, Italy did. He sold his work locally, and word spread. Now he’s happily established and living an artist’s life.
Instead of shouting into the void, think about cornering your local market.
Another way to narrow your focus is to niche down with your creative work. Instead of painting, photographing, or writing about all kinds of different things, what if you focused on one thing you’re passionate about?
Then brand your work accordingly.
Post and share your work in places devoted to the same niche. For example, a literary writer posting and connecting with other literary writers in a Substack group. Or a landscape painter who joins her local plein air painters’ organization.
It’s often easier to become known and appreciated by focusing on one thing. One discipline. The key is to stay consistent in your work and branding.
Whether black and white photography, travel writing or painting people’s pets, chasing a specific niche you love can lead to more success than sharing random work online and hoping for the best.
The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt
To be fulfilling, the creative work you do has to feed your soul. And you have to believe in it.
I write, shoot photos, and draw because it pleases me. Time evaporates when I’m creating. I do it whether or not money follows.
The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt. ―Sylvia Plath, The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath
My focus is on elegant, artful stories and essays about life lessons. Often illustrated with my black-and-white street photography and whimsical cartoons. My own, quirky sort of niche.
I publish books and have an eye on writing novels. They may or may not lead to fame and fortune. And that’s okay, because the work itself is fulfilling.
I live in Las Vegas, so maybe I’ll start a photography side project here. Niche down locally and see where it leads. Only time will tell.
All I know is that staying true to the work I love is how I stay sane in my creative practice.
How about you?
How can you stop shouting into the void, shaking your fist at the capricious whims of social media algorithms, and find happiness with your art?
Consider the advice here, make sure you’re doing it for the love of it, find your local market or unique niche, and then dive in.
Life is too short not to chase your creative dreams.
Before you go
I’m John P. Weiss. I write elegant stories and essays about life, often illustrated with my artful photography and drawings. Get the latest for free with The Saturday Letters.
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This post was previously published on Medium.com.
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Photo credit: John P. Weiss
