Approaching 10,000 views and contemplating my relationship with FimFiction · 1:33pm Feb 28th, 2021
So uh yeah, I'm about 2 views away from cracking 10,000 reads on chapter one of That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Pony. I honestly never expected that I would get that sort of eyeball action, tbh. Just as a disclaimer this is pretty much just going to be me rambling, please forgive me if it comes off some sort of way.
If I'm being honest, it's sort of crazy, scary even, how many people have decided that they want to clap eyes on my scribblings on a regular basis. There's honestly a lot of days where I'm sorta like...intimidated? Like I see how much I've done, and even though I know in the grand scheme of things, it's still a lot for me, and I find myself worrying about how I'm going to keep pace with myself. I write mostly for fun, but well, people are paying me to do it now, both in structured ways and on an informal basis over Patreon.
I love writing and I want to keep fleshing out the worlds I am making to be better and more engaging and entertaining, because I absolutely love seeing people engage with my work. I adore seeing that people have gotten enjoyment out of what I am writing. Even when they don't like it, it delights me that they read it and it engaged them enough to make them think about it and i get a lot of kicks out of engaging in reasonable discourse with fans and detractors alike. But at the same time, seeing that so many people are waiting, excited to see what I'm going to do next, it can be a lot of pressure. It's honestly inspiring that some of the big names on the site are able to deal with that sort of thing in my opinion. My tiny taste of what being relevant must be like has given me a whole new appreciation for how hard it must be to be a full-time content creator.
I've been thinking about the way I approach content creation, and I've been wondering if working at the frenetic pace I have been trying to maintain might not be healthy for me when I have work and my social life to balance with it, but at the same time, I would genuinely feel awful if I disappointed the people that are so excitedly waiting for the next installment of this that and the other, and I have the ideas there, waiting to be written, it sorta just, burns a hole in my metaphorical pocket when I know what I want to write but I'm not writing it. Like it won't leave me alone until I get it out.
I don't really know what the point of all of this is. What i am saying, I mean. I guess what I'm saying is, I'm super thankful that you all decided to stick around and read this much, and I'm really happy that you all enjoy my work. But at the same time, I'm worried that maybe I try too hard to live up to an unreasonable standard as a content creator in relation to my actual well...relationship to content creation, and the fact that I try so hard comes off as sort of cringe, or like I'm overdoing it a bit? Idk.
In any case, I don't plan on quitting anytime soon, and I hope you are all there with me to enjoy every possibly cringy moment of it ^^
We just enjoy that creative spark that people show when they roll with different ideas.
Keep up the good work.
5463629
Thanks! I'll try my best, I always do : 3
Dont go to fast, that leads to burn out.
Do what you think is best for you we are simply here for the stories
but seriously do what you want
5463725
5463634
thanks, y'all.
I don't know your complete situation, but I'll try to offer my advice:
First, "you feel intimidated."
This is completely normal. You can look at this like 'stage fright.' All of a sudden, you have a lot of people looking at you and you were not expecting that. I don't think a lot of creators (authors, artists, youtubers) realize that they could actually make a legit job out of their talents. But this comes with a heavy responsibility: Turning something that you do for fun into your job (to make a living wage) can be a blessing or a curse. It could lead to "never working a day in your life" or to immense burnout (as you've already been warned).
"People are paying you."
Congratulations! This is a complement and people like what you're doing.
People who pay for your posts could also have higher expectations of a strict release schedule. And honestly, depending on how much they pay, they would be ok to do so (especially for something like commissions).
Ask yourself: is this something I want to do for a job, or just for fun? Do I need to accept payments from patrons for living expenses, or does my current job cover this? Do I want to quit my job to write full-time? Will I make enough to keep my current standard of living?
Not accepting money would be a huge relief of potential stress. If your don't accept money, then you would feel no obligations.
Regardless of your decision, be up front with your fans about what they can expect from you (output wise) if they pay or not.
In closing...
Ask yourself, what made you post for the first time on this site? You wanted you share your thoughts, your story with other liked minded people, right? Well, it worked.
Think about why you originally posted in public, and think if that still applies to you now.
I hope these thoughts can help organize your feelings.
5463739
Once again, the Dude shows great wisdom. I mean, I guess I just sort of started monetizing my content out of habit. Like, I felt like that is what I am supposed to want to do. if people want to pay for a service I am willing to provide for free, why not make a bit of extra on the side with it and all that goodness. I think you're right, I should at least dial back my workload if I am going to try to take it more seriously. There is no need to try to speedrun success, if I write well consistently and put the work in, it'll come naturally, on its own.
Try not to feel pressured, although this might not mean as much since I’m not a writer. I enjoyed your creative spark a while back (when you made a blogpost saying you weren’t on crack) and seeing you write with passion and thought really showed in the chapters. I’d go on but I’d rather let the rest of the comment section do the rest, it’s basically the same idea.
im a lazy piece of shit5463795
Thanks, I really appreciate your candor.