I do not believe people are failing in their attention. If many are , it is the fault of their parents and teacher. Many parents dont have a clue about " SPENDING QUALITY TIME " one of my least favorite clitches and READING ALOUD with their kids. And READING ALOUD is free.
In out schools too many teachers are not aware of new books of the last fifty years FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD, that can grab and hold people's attention. Inmy 20 years of teachng at Northampton High School,, I brought in poetry, fiction, and essays from al over theworld.
And EnglishDepartments across the nation ( and it's probably true n other countries too) continue working in psuedosacred Idol In Idle known as the canon, a tight oblviious fiefdom where each lord has her or his very tightly established "curriculums " consisting often of their own interpretations often fairly afar from the author's original intent.
but when I and others have given our young women and men the works of Toni Morrison,, Margaret Atwood, Isabel Allende, Ann Sexton, Gwendolyn Brooks,, Frances Chung, and
Arundhati Roy they have welcomed these and other works with open arms.
There is currently a genocidall Gaza show in Palestine-Israel. You want to help students, ffriends andfamily the poetry leaders of the last fifty years in the Middle East, MAHMOUD DARWISH- the Pablo Neruda/Robert Frost/TS ELIOT/EMILY DICKENSON of his time.HAD HE NOT BEEN IN AN ARAB, HE WOULD HAVE WON THE NOBEL PRIZE DECADES AGO.
Many of my students have done remarkble projects related to their own penchants: paintings in the styles of Van Gogh, Kathe Kollwwiz, blues songs forcharacters in stories and novels, re-endings of novels ( To Kill A Mockingbird's Scout and herbrothr spring Tom Robinson from jail and form a new civil rightsgrooup.v
Meg! I feel this so hard. Kyle Chayka wrote an article in The New Yorker about the slow, steady rise of “dumb phones,” so who knows? Maybe we’re all starting to feel weary of this exact thing, prompted by smartphones and social media, where it feels like we have to sell ourselves all the time. As artists it starts to feel real existential because we primarily don’t create art for money or market performance anyway (although some of that would be nice). Anyway - such truth, thank you thank you
Thank you for writing this, Meg. I know I’m guilty of the above, too. It can all be so damn exhausting. We need to remember to savor the normal, mundane, everyday moments of our lives.
Meg, just terrific commentary. Loved it. It is very easy to be consumed while chasing the consumer. I spent an entire career in Sales and Marketing. Traveled constantly, worked basically 7 days a week - for years and years. Had very large customers and retailers. It paid well, but the price I paid was too high. It was soul crushing. I'll be damned if I'm going to repeat that, doing what I love, writing. Just yesterday I thinned my subscriber list (I have zero paid and probably never will) and it was the right thing to do because it was clear there was no interest by either party. They subscribed and I subscribed them back without even wondering what their interest was, if any. Basically, just like a couple of junkies sharing a dirty needle. I'm sure there are substack experts who would never do that and would 'strongly advise' against it because of losing exposure or eroding some other bullshit growth strategy. I honestly don't give a rat's ass what they say, or chart out, or recommend. Thanks again for this absolute gem. - Jim
I’m sensing frustration, Meg! LOL. Great post, and how I feel most of the time. We are performing like circus clowns, trying to have a meaningful presence on each and every social media site ever created while not doing any one of those sites well enough to make a difference. There are gatekeepers and algorithms and a few really talented people who suck up all the attention with their crazy skill or what they pay for followers. But here’s the thing… your writing IS unique and AI can’t create what you create. Focus on one or two things on the social media/ promotion side - hopefully with things you already like to do. Write your books, submit your manuscripts and do what you do on substack…continue radio & podcast promotion - You are a great interview - and your readers WILL find your fabulous writing. Do all of the other things you love to do and your have more material for your great writing.
See this is my complaint about most platforms, and it is why I like Substack a whole lot more than others. I don't need to make videos unless it is about topics that interest me, and when I write poetry or stories I can basically publish them here as 'content' without ever having it feel forced. My fantasy serial novels are doing well enough, and my lit analysis essays are fun to write and there's always a sense of upward growth even as I just have fun with those i like and read what interests me when I can.
Honestly, I've come to kind of detest youtube, and other video sites, because they are exactly as you described herein this excellent article.
The top bullet list is a recipe for an unrewarding life and burnout. The bottom is recipe for a good life, joy, and contentment. It seems like an easy choice…
Recipe for failure: mixing "attention" and "economy" in the same phrase. Might as well have a chocolate covered cockroach.
OMG. Truth in what 400 words? I Noted.
I do not believe people are failing in their attention. If many are , it is the fault of their parents and teacher. Many parents dont have a clue about " SPENDING QUALITY TIME " one of my least favorite clitches and READING ALOUD with their kids. And READING ALOUD is free.
In out schools too many teachers are not aware of new books of the last fifty years FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD, that can grab and hold people's attention. Inmy 20 years of teachng at Northampton High School,, I brought in poetry, fiction, and essays from al over theworld.
And EnglishDepartments across the nation ( and it's probably true n other countries too) continue working in psuedosacred Idol In Idle known as the canon, a tight oblviious fiefdom where each lord has her or his very tightly established "curriculums " consisting often of their own interpretations often fairly afar from the author's original intent.
but when I and others have given our young women and men the works of Toni Morrison,, Margaret Atwood, Isabel Allende, Ann Sexton, Gwendolyn Brooks,, Frances Chung, and
Arundhati Roy they have welcomed these and other works with open arms.
There is currently a genocidall Gaza show in Palestine-Israel. You want to help students, ffriends andfamily the poetry leaders of the last fifty years in the Middle East, MAHMOUD DARWISH- the Pablo Neruda/Robert Frost/TS ELIOT/EMILY DICKENSON of his time.HAD HE NOT BEEN IN AN ARAB, HE WOULD HAVE WON THE NOBEL PRIZE DECADES AGO.
Many of my students have done remarkble projects related to their own penchants: paintings in the styles of Van Gogh, Kathe Kollwwiz, blues songs forcharacters in stories and novels, re-endings of novels ( To Kill A Mockingbird's Scout and herbrothr spring Tom Robinson from jail and form a new civil rightsgrooup.v
Very inspiring! I think this should be widely shared.
Meg! I feel this so hard. Kyle Chayka wrote an article in The New Yorker about the slow, steady rise of “dumb phones,” so who knows? Maybe we’re all starting to feel weary of this exact thing, prompted by smartphones and social media, where it feels like we have to sell ourselves all the time. As artists it starts to feel real existential because we primarily don’t create art for money or market performance anyway (although some of that would be nice). Anyway - such truth, thank you thank you
Somebody had to write this 🙌 [Going back to juggling while I ride a one wheel bicycle on a thin rope dressed like a 🐻]
I pressed the “Like” button because there’s no “Uncomfortably Impacted” button.
The thing is, I’m just not sure I’m brave enough to be ok with failing in the attention economy.
Thank you for writing this, Meg. I know I’m guilty of the above, too. It can all be so damn exhausting. We need to remember to savor the normal, mundane, everyday moments of our lives.
Meg, just terrific commentary. Loved it. It is very easy to be consumed while chasing the consumer. I spent an entire career in Sales and Marketing. Traveled constantly, worked basically 7 days a week - for years and years. Had very large customers and retailers. It paid well, but the price I paid was too high. It was soul crushing. I'll be damned if I'm going to repeat that, doing what I love, writing. Just yesterday I thinned my subscriber list (I have zero paid and probably never will) and it was the right thing to do because it was clear there was no interest by either party. They subscribed and I subscribed them back without even wondering what their interest was, if any. Basically, just like a couple of junkies sharing a dirty needle. I'm sure there are substack experts who would never do that and would 'strongly advise' against it because of losing exposure or eroding some other bullshit growth strategy. I honestly don't give a rat's ass what they say, or chart out, or recommend. Thanks again for this absolute gem. - Jim
I’m sensing frustration, Meg! LOL. Great post, and how I feel most of the time. We are performing like circus clowns, trying to have a meaningful presence on each and every social media site ever created while not doing any one of those sites well enough to make a difference. There are gatekeepers and algorithms and a few really talented people who suck up all the attention with their crazy skill or what they pay for followers. But here’s the thing… your writing IS unique and AI can’t create what you create. Focus on one or two things on the social media/ promotion side - hopefully with things you already like to do. Write your books, submit your manuscripts and do what you do on substack…continue radio & podcast promotion - You are a great interview - and your readers WILL find your fabulous writing. Do all of the other things you love to do and your have more material for your great writing.
See this is my complaint about most platforms, and it is why I like Substack a whole lot more than others. I don't need to make videos unless it is about topics that interest me, and when I write poetry or stories I can basically publish them here as 'content' without ever having it feel forced. My fantasy serial novels are doing well enough, and my lit analysis essays are fun to write and there's always a sense of upward growth even as I just have fun with those i like and read what interests me when I can.
Honestly, I've come to kind of detest youtube, and other video sites, because they are exactly as you described herein this excellent article.
Ahhh, Meg. Thanks for “confirming humanity.” Needed this today, and I’d restack but somehow that seems…wrong?
The top bullet list is a recipe for an unrewarding life and burnout. The bottom is recipe for a good life, joy, and contentment. It seems like an easy choice…
WRITE! Crap. I mean right. Hahah! Yes yes and soooo yes!
To be honest, posting to please others is very energy draining in the long run.
Better to just make stuff we like to do and post. Someone out there might enjoy the same thing 😊