Quitting social media felt like a hard thing to do 5 years ago, because there was a mix of good and bad on the platforms. They could still be useful. The platforms themselves have made it increasingly easy to leave, though, through good ol' enshittification - even while their algorithms focus on keeping us addicted, the actual drug itself has become less and less fun.
I'm on this train atm. I just can't find the motivation to social media anymore. I've lost my desire. I still like drawing silly comics and writing silly songs, and occasionally Instagram in particular is fun for things like that, but I very much have been feeling what the heck am I even doing here on a lot of the others.
Thanks, Sarah. Yes, it can still be fun--at times! Intermittent reinforcement is so powerful! But I wish I could get the 100-200 hours (wild guess) that I spent on IG in 2024.
Solidarity. For me, what I’m noticing is the same response to my leaving FB as when I quit pro writing 20 years ago: lots of support, yes, but also a lot of people who act as if my leaving is communicable, and who cut me off preemptively. They’ll admit that they’re unhappy with the algorithms and the incessant scrolling, but they got a massive response in 2010 and they’re terrified that they’ll miss out of some magical payout if they leave now or acknowledge that someone leaving might have a reason. (I’m already seeing signs of early leavetaking of TikTok, which causes the addicts to put out more, less out of assuming that there will be more views to go around for them and more out of desperation to prove that we’ll all be SO sorry for leaving when they hit it big.) Things are going to get ugly on most social media (they already ARE ugly on X), and now’s where we’re going to see who uses it in place of a life and those who want to accomplish something, ANYTHING, else.
I’ve been using IG less and less…like you, I made great writer connections there, people I consider true friends. But I don’t love it and find it draining. I’ve been wanting to let it go. I think I might follow your lead!
Thanks for reading, Paige. If it's time for you, I hope you do. I think that was the hardest thing for me--rationalizing quitting, given all the benefits I'd received early on, and worrying I'd lose future benefits. I believe scientists call this "loss aversion"-the pain of losing is twice as strong as the pleasure of gaining. Las Vegas and social media have a lot in common!
I’ve definitely been on social media less but haven’t managed to cut the cord all together. I do think it’s a different world out there right now.
When I think about future book projects I want to work on the ones that don’t feel like they will be so platform dependent (ie not nonfiction) are more appealing to me. In any event, appreciate all your thoughts on all of this.
Thanks, Julie! And continued kudos on your humor newsletter which I rec to anyone reading this. The less I use social media, the more I value Substacks!
Thank you. I agree on Substack—I would rather read a lot of thoughtful Substacks (like this one) than endlessly scroll social media. And I'm not sure if you saw the Culture Study post on this already but a lot of what she said there resonated with me too: https://annehelen.substack.com/p/posting-less
I was a very early un-adopter. As soon as I figured out that the algorithm was feeding me what it thought I should see, I was out of there. Never ever missed it.
and also, i had no idea Billie Ellish wrote a book. nor do I htink i could name one of her songs. I've gotten waaaaaay too fond of bluesky and if there is such a thing as a substack junkie...i'm getting there. But I love the honesty & clarity - and lack of judgeymcjudgeypants here
See? And I need people like you to use things like Bluesky so that if I mention it in a novel manuscript you can say, "Uh, Wikipedia may mention 'skeets' as the word for posts but none of us cool kids on Bluesky say 'skeets,' so cut that out."
Also: Billie's "What Was I Made For" is on the playlist I play whenever I am waiting for a much delayed email from agent or publisher. Not kidding!
Very persuasive and reassuring, Andromeda, thank you. I've found the same as you: my agent and the marketing people at my publishers never talk about my using social media. And yet there's that nagging sense that unless I'm using it I'm somehow not supporting my books as fully as I might. But I really don't want to be sinking my time and attention into any of it. Substack seems to be the great exception because writing on here (and reading essays like yours) is genuinely a pleasure, therefore whether it helps sell more books or not is moot. Thanks again for the great article
I wrote about this last week, too. Social media has felt like flinging darts at a board with my eyes closed and arm weighted for a long time. It felt like something I HAD to do if I wanted to be a serious and professional writer. All this time I also heard how social media didn’t really work but it was necessary for “engagement.” So I’ve concluded that I value my time more than potential loss of engagement. One reader responded to my Substack letter saying she imagined my readers would support me no matter what.
That was nice to hear.
I’m quiet quitting all but 10% of my social media time. That’s the best I can do for now, but as more of us creatives quit socials, the less audiences will look for us there. I hope to quit 100% at some point.
Love your flinging darts metaphor! And I agree with everything you said above, Shelley. I am interested in your "10%" plan. That's probably realistic for me, too, following my full detox, if I have to creep back on occasionally for freelance purposes.
"...as more of us creatives quit socials, the less audiences will look for us there."
I figure if I post once every 10 days…or so…that would do it. The cool thing is that once I’m off for a day, if I go back on (to Facebook, mostly) I find it more annoying. That is a disincentive for getting on there again…so a progressive improvement. Hopefully.
Quitting social media felt like a hard thing to do 5 years ago, because there was a mix of good and bad on the platforms. They could still be useful. The platforms themselves have made it increasingly easy to leave, though, through good ol' enshittification - even while their algorithms focus on keeping us addicted, the actual drug itself has become less and less fun.
Staying off social media during the early pandemic must have been extra hard! You were a very early anti-adopter!
I'm on this train atm. I just can't find the motivation to social media anymore. I've lost my desire. I still like drawing silly comics and writing silly songs, and occasionally Instagram in particular is fun for things like that, but I very much have been feeling what the heck am I even doing here on a lot of the others.
Thanks, Sarah. Yes, it can still be fun--at times! Intermittent reinforcement is so powerful! But I wish I could get the 100-200 hours (wild guess) that I spent on IG in 2024.
Solidarity. For me, what I’m noticing is the same response to my leaving FB as when I quit pro writing 20 years ago: lots of support, yes, but also a lot of people who act as if my leaving is communicable, and who cut me off preemptively. They’ll admit that they’re unhappy with the algorithms and the incessant scrolling, but they got a massive response in 2010 and they’re terrified that they’ll miss out of some magical payout if they leave now or acknowledge that someone leaving might have a reason. (I’m already seeing signs of early leavetaking of TikTok, which causes the addicts to put out more, less out of assuming that there will be more views to go around for them and more out of desperation to prove that we’ll all be SO sorry for leaving when they hit it big.) Things are going to get ugly on most social media (they already ARE ugly on X), and now’s where we’re going to see who uses it in place of a life and those who want to accomplish something, ANYTHING, else.
Interesting! I appreciate your comments. Thanks for the long-term view, Paul.
I’ve been using IG less and less…like you, I made great writer connections there, people I consider true friends. But I don’t love it and find it draining. I’ve been wanting to let it go. I think I might follow your lead!
Thanks for reading, Paige. If it's time for you, I hope you do. I think that was the hardest thing for me--rationalizing quitting, given all the benefits I'd received early on, and worrying I'd lose future benefits. I believe scientists call this "loss aversion"-the pain of losing is twice as strong as the pleasure of gaining. Las Vegas and social media have a lot in common!
I’ve definitely been on social media less but haven’t managed to cut the cord all together. I do think it’s a different world out there right now.
When I think about future book projects I want to work on the ones that don’t feel like they will be so platform dependent (ie not nonfiction) are more appealing to me. In any event, appreciate all your thoughts on all of this.
Thanks, Julie! And continued kudos on your humor newsletter which I rec to anyone reading this. The less I use social media, the more I value Substacks!
Thank you. I agree on Substack—I would rather read a lot of thoughtful Substacks (like this one) than endlessly scroll social media. And I'm not sure if you saw the Culture Study post on this already but a lot of what she said there resonated with me too: https://annehelen.substack.com/p/posting-less
Keep on keeping on!! Reading pieces like this strengthen my resolve to stay off.
I was a very early un-adopter. As soon as I figured out that the algorithm was feeding me what it thought I should see, I was out of there. Never ever missed it.
I’m impressed! ☺️
and also, i had no idea Billie Ellish wrote a book. nor do I htink i could name one of her songs. I've gotten waaaaaay too fond of bluesky and if there is such a thing as a substack junkie...i'm getting there. But I love the honesty & clarity - and lack of judgeymcjudgeypants here
See? And I need people like you to use things like Bluesky so that if I mention it in a novel manuscript you can say, "Uh, Wikipedia may mention 'skeets' as the word for posts but none of us cool kids on Bluesky say 'skeets,' so cut that out."
Also: Billie's "What Was I Made For" is on the playlist I play whenever I am waiting for a much delayed email from agent or publisher. Not kidding!
Very persuasive and reassuring, Andromeda, thank you. I've found the same as you: my agent and the marketing people at my publishers never talk about my using social media. And yet there's that nagging sense that unless I'm using it I'm somehow not supporting my books as fully as I might. But I really don't want to be sinking my time and attention into any of it. Substack seems to be the great exception because writing on here (and reading essays like yours) is genuinely a pleasure, therefore whether it helps sell more books or not is moot. Thanks again for the great article
Thank you, TK!
Agree. Substack newsletters are an exception. Not so much social media. More a communication vehicle.
I wrote about this last week, too. Social media has felt like flinging darts at a board with my eyes closed and arm weighted for a long time. It felt like something I HAD to do if I wanted to be a serious and professional writer. All this time I also heard how social media didn’t really work but it was necessary for “engagement.” So I’ve concluded that I value my time more than potential loss of engagement. One reader responded to my Substack letter saying she imagined my readers would support me no matter what.
That was nice to hear.
I’m quiet quitting all but 10% of my social media time. That’s the best I can do for now, but as more of us creatives quit socials, the less audiences will look for us there. I hope to quit 100% at some point.
Love your flinging darts metaphor! And I agree with everything you said above, Shelley. I am interested in your "10%" plan. That's probably realistic for me, too, following my full detox, if I have to creep back on occasionally for freelance purposes.
"...as more of us creatives quit socials, the less audiences will look for us there."
Hear, hear!
I figure if I post once every 10 days…or so…that would do it. The cool thing is that once I’m off for a day, if I go back on (to Facebook, mostly) I find it more annoying. That is a disincentive for getting on there again…so a progressive improvement. Hopefully.