I was pushing $10 behind a video I just produced. The geniuses as YouTube said, “Promotions of $200 or more tend to get better results.” Ya think so?
What Do I Do With My Art?
Let’s say you’ve got a book, a new album, and a short film ready for distribution. Okay, let’s look at your PLATFORM.
Hmmm.
Let’s start with the book.
Facebook
LinkedIn
Twitter
IG/TikTok
Email list
Money
What is your goal? What is your budget? What is your timeframe?
In a recent conversation with a publicist, I was turned down for my AI and Creativity book. I didn’t have the platform. “Divorce and dating, sure, but we don’t see a lot of upside for the AI book. And “creativity” doesn’t really sell.”
Oh, so that’s why there aren’t any books on creativity and ai? And why The Artist’s Way and Writing Down the Bones are the only two success stories in the entire field. Okay, wait, let’s start over again.
Music – Books – Movies
Let’s look at this from the “next 10 year” lens. Which of these areas of investment are you planning on developing over the next decade? Will you still be writing? Yes. Any particular topic? Yes. I’d really like to get on with my *literature* work.
Wait, what?
What about music? Will you still be writing and recording songs over the next ten years? For sure. Okay, then what are you going to do with them? Do you want to tour? Play live? Or just put out the occasional video?
The easy answers. No touring, unless I can open for Radiohead. Playing live, as long as it doesn’t involve a weeknight in a dingy club. Um. And there needs to be more than five people there. Recording? Yes. Distribution? See, that’s the problem again.
No one is going to discover my literate side if I keep writing self-help books. And no one is going to hear my songs unless I put a buck or two behind them, and get a few more listens than my average 20 views.
It’s hard to decide what to prioritize. I shot myself in the foot last week, overthinking this issue. In my mastermind self-help session with myself I realized that my novels were not going to write themselves. And poems and short stories are fun… And what about this shit? What does this post have to do with anything?
Why Create?
Except it has everything to do with everything. I don’t write to be famous. Thank goodness. I don’t play music to be like a rockstar. I have a drive. A creative urge. I’ve been finding tables to sit down and write at since I was in college. It hasn’t slowed down. If anything, I’m writing more now than I ever imagined. And, I’m not nominated for any prizes. Back in the heyday of iTunes I used to make $20 – $30 a month from my song purchases. Remember that, when people bought music?
Today, there is little oxygen for musicians without a huge budget or a beautiful young face. Oh, we’re still out here. Most of us, like myself, are laboring away in our isolation, trying to put a perfect love song together. Many more of us are working day jobs and playing on weeknights in crappy clubs, just to have an audience.
How do we cultivate a fanbase in today’s pay-to-play social media landscape? Perhaps we don’t. Maybe, if I really believe in my work, I’ll just keep doing it, no matter what. Yes, I’d love you to listen to my new record, but… It’s not that important. Errr. Am I having a sourgrapes moment here?
What I learned from Letters to a Young Poet was this. Write (paint, play, sing) because you can’t live without it. Don’t seek fame or fortune. If your work is really spectacular the craft alone will be enough to motivate you to keep going.
I had a moment of doubt over the weekend. A “hold up” moment. I was getting ready to rehearse with a band to release my next record. Suddenly, in the middle of a Saturday afternoon, pre-rehearsing, I worried about the mountain ahead:
- get songs and set ready to perform
- beg for a venue to give me a “new band” slot
- beg for friends and associates to come see me on a Tuesday night
- play to 10 people
- shoot some live video, careful not to show the lack of audience
and…
Nada.
That’s it? That’s the plan? Hardly seems worth it. Perhaps a better idea is to work hard at what I do for a living. Make an extra $10 and put it behind a video for one of the songs. What if that IS the way forward?
I don’t want to be a rockstar. (Kinda I do.) But, if I get over my childhood fantasy, I can see the creation of the music, the writing of the books, the voicing of a song or a poem onto tape, into a video, onto a playlist. That. That alone has got to be enough.
Does it matter what I write? Sure. Should I suppress some of my less-important writing? Why? What if I just press on? I have books on the shelf. I have more on the way. New songs are already being recorded for the next Buzzie album.
What gets in the way of me being a successful writer or musician?
Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The happiness and pleasure my work gives me, in the act of creating it, is enough. Sure, I’d like to get some publicity for my book or album, but I don’t really need it. Maybe that’s like my desire to get an MFA an MBA or a PH.D. Do I need one? No. Would it help my book sales or career? At this point in life, no.
Go forward. Create. Find creative ways to merge your art with your work. The biggest lesson, focus but don’t kill the flow by analyzing and worrying about reach and marketing. The great American novel will take care of itself when it’s written. Or, maybe the 3rd or 4th one.
One of my favorite writers, D. H. Lawrence was poor until the day he died. He had a fine life. He believed in his work. He kept at it. He found small audiences as he grew as a writer.
That’s it. I’ll take the long road.
- Here’s the latest music video from my band Buzzie – I Need a Good Day
- And the ongoing progress of my current writing projects – McElhenney.net
- Finally, my Amazon Authors page – John Oakley McElhenney
Take what you like. And if you know Thom Yorke give him a nudge for me.
John McElhenney — let’s connect online
Facebook & LinkedIn & The Whole Parent
few more of my creative ai motions:
- waltwhitman.ai < a book of “whitmanesque poetry” with zero AI
- Radio No Head < *ai* parsed music for you to sing and dream with
- poətic.com < my page about the ai poetry conundrum
- hyper-soul < the science fiction exploration and world-building project
- clickthis.ai < my team for *ai* marketing and sales acceleration
Please check out a few of my books on AMAZON.