Raise your hand if this sounds like you. You have more than one creative passion. Maybe you’re a writer, but you’re also a musician.
You started a website or blog to showcase your talents. You post these wonderful short stories and poems. But other days, you upload some of your newest song recordings.
Or, maybe you’re a woodworker, so you got a WordPress blog going to write about your craft and share some pictures. But, you’re also a passionate hamster breeder, so you throw in some articles and pictures about hamsters.
Okay, that last one is ridiculous. But you get the point.
Don’t ask. This is from my old Medium article, “You Think You Know Your Hamster, But You Don’t.”
Most of us have more than one passion. Heck, I used to have many. I loved landscape painting, cartooning, writing, martial arts and music.
I did what any passionate, multi-faceted creative would do. I put everything on one website. I became a creative schizophrentic.
. . .
Jack of all trades, master of none
Most of us have multiple interests, and that’s a healthy thing. We are not one dimensional beings. Pursuing different passions helps us grow, and sometimes one passion can positively influence another. Leonardo da Vinci comes to mind.
For example, when I was an avid jiu jitsu practitioner, the concepts I learned in martial arts could often be applied to other areas in life.
Like the idea of redirecting a more powerful force, rather than absorbing it head on. I could take that concept and use it in my personal development writing, to encourage people to sidestep collisions at work with their bosses. Or avoid fights with their spouses by redirecting the conversation.
Writers do this kind of thing all the time. They borrow from their other passions to tell stories or teach valuable lessons.
But here’s where it gets tricky.
If you’re going to put up a website or start a blog, you have to decide precisely what it’s going to be about.
It’s okay to use concepts from other passions, so long as they’re in support of your main topic.
Readers generally don’t like scattershot, all-over-the-place blogs. Which is a bummer for all of us multi-faceted people who are interested in everthing. It’s much more fun to write about whatever we want than be confined to a particular theme or subject.
Unfortunately, if you want to build an audience, you need to narrow your website or blog down to a clear topic or interest. Otherwise, you risk becoming a jack of all trades, master of none.
On the website iheartplanners.com, a blogger named Laura wrote a post titled “Is it okay to blog about multiple topics?” Here’s an excerpt:
From a purely strategic perspective, it probably is ideal for a blog to be focused on one topic. It will be easier to attract readers who are interested in that topic and can usually be profitable sooner than a blog that covers a wider range of topics.
. . .
I was turning into a digital Sybil
The very first website I started was called “Weiss Cartoons.” I used to be an editorial cartoonist for two newspapers, and I used my website to promote my work.
The newspaper cartooning was a part-time job away from my main career as a police officer. I also used to draw law enforcement cartoons for various publications, and I added my cop cartoons to my website, too.
Then, I got into fine art and studied landscape painting with a famous artist in Idaho. I thought about adding a gallery on my cartoon site, to share my fine art paintings. But I realized this might confuse my cartoon fans. So, I created another website (JohnPWeiss.com) for my fine art.
I started blogging about fine art at JohnPWeiss.com, but then started adding short, inspirational stories and personal development articles. They had nothing to do with art.
In my zest to share my creative passions, I was turning into a digital Sybil (the infamous woman with multiple personalities.) I was all over the place, which explained why I had difficulty attracting email subscribers to my list.
Worse, whenever I veered off-topic on my art website, some readers would unsubscribe.
. . .
What’s this blog supposed to be about?
There were a few other blogs I tried to create over the years. One was called “Cop Wisdom,” where I shared life lessons learned from my law enforcement career.
“Cop Wisdom” actually had a clear theme. It was all about helping people get more out of life by making good decisions. But then, I changed the name of the blog to “The Cartooning Cop,” which I thought was catchier.
I started adding little cop cartoons to the blog, and continued to write about life lessons. The problem was that changing the name confused people. “What’s this blog supposed to be about?” readers must have thought.
Fast forward a few years, and I find myself back to just one website, JohnPWeiss.com. The minimalist in me kept wanting to put everything under one roof. My paintings, cartoons, inspirational stories and personal development writing.
Unfortunately, like before, I occasionally ran into the same old problems. Subscribers who joined my website for the paintings and articles about the creative arts, were not interested in my personal development posts. Fine art collectors scratched their heads over the cartoon gallery.
Readers from Medium.com, who enjoy my cartoons and personal development pieces, wondered why my website had all these fine art paintings.
What’s a schizophrenic creative to do? Get help!
. . .
Which one will be your passion project?
I reached out to one of my favorite writers on-line, Jonas Ellison. Many of you might know him from his wonderful publication, Cricket Hill (formerly Higher Thoughts) at Medium.com.
Working with Jonas Ellison, it didn’t take long before I realized that I needed to work on redesigning my website. People looking to purchase paintings and read about the creative arts aren’t necessarily looking for personal development articles and cartoons.
Similarly, folks who enjoy cartoons and self-improvement posts, are probably not thinking, “Hey, while I’m here, maybe I’ll buy that landscape painting.”
So, I’m now in the process of redesigning my website. I experimented with having two websites (one for cartoons, and one for fine art) but I found it difficult to juggle both.
The solution is to craft a website that offers clear choices, so visitors can click on what interests them. The updated site is still being built, but I hope to have it up and running soon.
Working with Jonas, what I realized is that I’m a creator. That’s the common theme in my work. Painting, cartooning and fine writing all fall under that banner of being a creator.
“Last light.” Oil on panel, by John P. Weiss
As a creator, I can offer visitors different galleries. One for fine art paintings, and another for my cartoons. I just have to make it clear.
I even had a website titled “Policetoons.com” for a few years.
Most experts advise against having two websites. Running one successful website or blog is hard enough. Especially if you’re trying to grow an audience.
Providing consistent, high quality content is demanding. If you aim to create products and monetize your blog, it can become nearly a full-time job.
To make it work, you have to decide which one will be your main thing, and which one will be your passion project. Jonas helped me understand this in our discussions.
I realized that my cartooning was my most unique, highly developed talent. I’ve been cartooning since childhood. The same goes for my writing. My landscape painting came much later.
Jonas suggested that I designate my landscape painting as a passion project. Something I can continue to hone and enjoy, but without the pressure of trying to build a big audience around.
Initially, I separated my work into two websites. One for cartoons and the other for my fine art (my passion project).
But then I realized that it was possible to keep the fine art and cartoons on one site, since the over-riding them of the site is art, writing and creativity. If one of my passions were automotive repair, that would not fit well with art. It would demand its own website.
As long as your passions are all related in some way, you can get away with having them on one site. But if they are completely unrelated, you’re probably better off separating them.
. . .
You can’t rush art
I was in law enforcement for over 26 years, serving the last ten as chief of police. I enjoyed my police career, but always dreamed of having a creative career.
I decided to retire from law enforcement early, rather than work another five years to maximize my pension. I wanted to dive into my cartooning, writing and painting.
I figured I could build an on-line business around my creative work, to supplement my income. In talking with Jonas, I realized that cartooning and writing scales easier than fine art.
For example, I can spend a weekend and create a cartoon eBook. Or spend a several days filming and editing an on-line cartooning course. Once these products are made, they can be sold digitally over and over. An original oil painting, by contrast, can only be sold once.
Creating quality, finished landscape paintings take time. Some of my field studies take less time, but they still have to dry (I paint in oils), be varnished and framed. Maybe that’s where the saying, “You can’t rush art,” comes from?
Because it’s time consuming to create and sell a lot of paintings, a lot of artists supplement their incomes with workshops and instructional videos.
I have every intention to keep painting and establish myself as a fine artist. But I don’t want to lose my passion for painting by worrying about sales or a side income. And I don’t feel I’m ready yet to host workshops. So, landscape painting is more of my passion project.
No more schizophrenia. I’m crafting an updated website to showcase all my creative work. I’m clearer now with where I’m going. I view my website as a repository for all my artwork and writing, since they’re related. I might put more emphasis on one than another, but I no longer feel like a digital Sybil.
. . .
How about you?
Are you struggling to figure out what your website or blog is going to be about? I highly recommend that you identify the one thing that you’re most passionate about.
Pick the interest that you’re best at. The thing that everyone agrees you truly rock at. You want to stand out, and quality matters.
Also, stick with one website or blog. As long as the content is related on the site, you can get away with more than one topic. For example, gardening and cooking could go together, especially if you grow herbs. Or, music and poetry.
My cartooning and personal development writing requires most of my effort. Fortunately, being retired from law enforcement, I have more time to focus on my creative work.
This is how you manage your creative schizophrenia online. Pick the one thing you really stand out with. Craft consistent, high quality content for readers. Or, if you pick two or three things, make sure they’re all related in some way.
Be authentic. Stick with one website. Make your other interests passion projects, so there’s less pressure on you. In this way, you can truly focus on your website/blog, grow a loyal audience, and even monetize your site if you want.
The sky is the limit! Now, go create something amazing that we can all enjoy!
One last thing
I’m John P. Weiss. Fine artist and writer. For cartoons and more articles like this, get on my free email list here.
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This post was previously published on ART + marketing and is republished here with permission from the author.
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Photo credit: John P. Weiss