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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Honest to God, I'd like to pursue writing, but I just CANNOT STAND writer Twitter.[b] And it seems like you have to have a Twitter following to get published[/b]. Have some other folks decided not to take certain career paths because of social media nonsense? [/quote]

Agreed. This has been a barrier to my development and confidence as a writer, tbh. I've mostly kept away from social media for my mental health. Privacy is incredibly important to me as a survivor of violence. But my lack of social capital via a notable twitter/ig presence, or the desire to achieve one, has discouraged me from submitting my work and connecting with other writers out of fear of rejection. I'm still trying to forge my own little path but[b] I do worry that there is no space left in this field for people who aren't Extremely Online.[/b] [/quote]

This is how i feel too -- that success would require embracing Extremely Online stuff, which i just can't ever do. [/quote]
I’m very sorry for this, PPs. As a visual artist I feel similarly. The cream is not rising to the top, just the IG detritus. [/quote]

This is so, so true[/quote]
Unfortunately this is how it is for anyone in any creative field now. If you want to be a model, writer, singer, actor, artist etc. nobody will look at your or your work without already having a social media following. If you go to audition for something or submit work you are expected to put you social media handles and number of followers on the resume you submit. There is no room for discovery or introductions anymore because there is too much media and everyone is trying to grab your attention plus the fact that at least in the entertainment world profits have plummeted and there is only room for safe guaranteed hits. [/quote]

I don't think that's quite true. At least not in writing. It helps to have a twitter following - it helps to have any kind of platform. But that is not the only way to get published. As a writer you will almost certainly have to play a big role in marketing your own work - but getting published won't hinge on already being famous. It's just that already-famous people (on twitter, youtube, or whatever) have an easier time getting published.

There are all kinds of reasons not to want to be a writer. Trust me I wish I didn't want to be one. It's time consuming and an excellent way to get kicked in the face a lot (while saying "what delicious dirt!"). But don't use this as your reason not to try. If you want to write, write. Work on the craft part. Try to build a healthy, supportive, helpful group of writer friends who can lean on each other for support and guidance. Don't use this as the devil on your shoulder telling you that there's no point.

Most people are not going to enjoy riches and massive literary success from their writing - gd bless the few writers on this thread who seem to be doing really well, I would love them to start AMAs! - and you probably won't either. So just write because you have a story to tell. Write because you have these characters telling  you bits of dialogue that you want to write down, and a puzzle you want to crack through fiction, and a setting you want to go spend a couple of years getting to know really well by living in it in your head. Don't worry about Celeste Ng. She's off doing her thing. You go do yours.[/quote]

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