Category: Social MediaCategory: Social Media

From an interview with Craig Lewis earlier this year:

“Do I believe we can exist without social media? Absolutely I do.

There’s so many ways that we can get in touch and build community and build audience and build a fan group around what we do without putting all our magic onto other people’s platforms.”

For some, posting on social media can be dangerous, as South Central Run Club explains:

“Most of our runners are Black and brown and you never know when ICE is gonna pull up. Instead of broadcasting our runs and making us vulnerable to surveillance, we stopped putting it on Instagram to make people feel safer to come and hang out.”

Great question from Evolet Yvaine via Substack.

Q. I’m just curious if any of your interviews are with fiction authors. Or if you’ve had clients who are fiction authors and how they’re navigating getting off social media.

A. Honestly, no, but I bet if I had some more conversations with fiction writers we’d get a little closer to the answer. Like, there is just so much to explore in this area, and so many beliefs to bust through, and so many ideas to bat around, but it takes time, trust, and some good old faith to see it through.

If you’re interested, you can get a 30 day trial for just $10 and join any of my 3+ weekly Escape Pod Zoom calls to talk about this sort of stuff with other creative folks!

A friend of mine got a promotion at work. Talked to another friend who got a “word of mouth” referral, and it meeting a new client tomorrow. A local business owner is moving to a new location, and we talked about the headaches involved (and the return of their delicious chocolate chip cookies).

Was chatting with another friend who has wanted to start doing 1:1 client work, and they just got their first booking. Had a Zoom chat with someone I met on an Akimbo workshop call back in 2019, and we bounced around good vibes and stellar energy.

The more I think about Social Media Escape Club, the more I realize it’s all about the personal connections. It’s not just about the conversations, the encouragement, the support, the regular check ins, but the depth of those interactions.

Social media promotes more views, impressions, likes, and replies. It’s the glut of “happy birthday” comments left on those automated LinkedIn and Facebook posts, instead of the warmth of someone who texts or calls you on your big day.

Lots of well paid people sit in meetings all day plotting new ways to keep us exhausted and tied to the idea that without social media we’re nothing. Their livelihood (and two summer homes) depend on you making another post, using another hashtag, editing another vertical video.

They want you lugging a mic stand into the woods instead of playing a gig on a Tuesday night.

If you’re not spending time on their platform, why would they help you promote your gig? That’s why they want your “native uploads.” You’re rewarded with likes and “views” from people you don’t know, can’t meet, and maybe don’t even exist.

From James O’Sullivan in “The Last Days Of Social Media,”

“Average interaction rates across major platforms are declining fast: Facebook and X posts now scrape an average 0.15% engagement, while Instagram has dropped 24% year-on-year. Even TikTok has begun to plateau.”

Even if you’re still clinging to the glory days of social media, there is growing evidence that the best days are clearly in the past.

Most everything you post isn’t even seen by 95% of your followers. Sure, now and again they’ll see it, since the casino has to pay out once in awhile, but folks on social media want to be on social media.

“The timeline is no longer a source of information or social presence, but more of a mood-regulation device, endlessly replenishing itself with just enough novelty to suppress the anxiety of stopping.”

(via Jeffery Saddoris)