the craft. finding your voice in the digital age.
Can I tell you a secret? When there was so much bubbling over whether or not TikTok was going to be banned, I didn’t care at all. Not one bit. Even though I’ve thumbed through the timeline, laughed and enjoyed creator content, I thought, whew, one less social media outlet to keep up with. I thought for a moment, is this the beginning of the return to real life things? Will we finally have had enough with algorithms and an inflated sense of connectivity, and then, it came right back.
I’m still not sure I really care. I opened the app the other day randomly and saw so many missed notifications because I know even with it surviving the ban, it will never be the same. Without getting too much into how they’re trying to control us, I will just say that love it or hate it, we are all trying to figure out our relationship to social media and I am no different.
Generally, I love that social media has helped so many people evade the gatekeepers of the past. We have this direct connection to an audience of people who want our work without having to beg and petition for someone else to see the value in it. That in itself is major. I don’t know how I would have built my career without it, quite frankly. But as I age and become generally more crickety, I am trying to find the balance between becoming the writer I want to be and still maintaining a presence in the digital space.
It’s hard to know what even works anymore. It feels like I’ve leveled out on my ability to actually gain followers on Instagram. Twitter (I don’t want to call it X) used to be this lively space, and still is in moments when something collective is happening, but it’s nothing like what it used to be. I would say that currently, Threads and Substack honestly feel the most rewarding for me as a writer currently. But how are we able to carve out our space in this current climate? Well, I’m not all the way sure but I have a few thoughts.
These digital platforms are simply a way to amplify the voice that already exists. So the first step in developing a voice in the online space is understanding it in real time. With so many years of writing under my belt, I know exactly who I am as a writer. Witty, romantic, humorous, hip-hop, conversational. Knowing all of these elements of my voice helps me with how I show up in the online space. If you haven’t done that work of knowing who you are on or off the page, I would maybe stop reading here and work on that part. Doesn’t mean that I’m not still developing aspects of my writing voice, but there is a strong sense of voice to work with foundationally.
Now, if you have some of that work done, in my humble opinion, authenticity will always be at the forefront of building a brand, platform, or voice that is sustainable. Yes, we know that many people with popular platforms have faked their way to the top, but I also know that many of them haven’t been able to keep the facade going. Personally, I always want to lead with integrity and honesty. That’s been true since my days of blogging back in 2013. The Ashley that you get online is pretty much the same Ashley you get in real life. Maybe just with a few less curse words. Ha!
Authenticity is this opportunity to uniquely set yourself apart from everything else that’s happening. There are fifty million people trying to do the same things, but there is only one you. Don’t downplay that superpower.
I also think that a lot of us grapple with our personal and professional voices. From the beginning, I never had a real interest in sharing the most personal parts of my life on social media. Now, when I say this, go with me, I do share personal things. But only if they have a purpose. Sharing about my family’s recent grief is not solely about sharing my business. It’s about sharing in an authentic way to let people know, “hey I may owe you an email, but something very real is happening in my life and the least important thing to me right now is that email.”
In the early stages of social media, people would have a lot of separate accounts so they could share personal things on one and business things on the other. For me, what I’m willing to share about my personal life and my business aren’t that far off. So one account it is, for me. Of course, I’ve had to break out for some of my other endeavors, like PTW which is its own brand. But I’m really okay with curating my whole feed in a way that serves my greater mission.
Only you can figure out what that balance is for you and whether or not you want to make a burner account for your truly scathing opinions in the likes of Drake and Kevin Durant.
I’ve also talked a lot about utilizing digital tools in a way that helps you continue to tell your story and/or the story of your work. When you start to hone in on that, developing content and things to post becomes a lot easier. Is this a part of the story I’m trying to tell? When we excavate our deepest parts, I think themes can emerge. At the heart of me is the need to encourage others, the need to tell stories of ambitious women, family, love, music. I do my best to share about those things online as an extension of the literature I want to put out into the world.
Kendrick’s superbowl performance was a masterclass in the story that he was trying to tell at this moment in his career. LA and west coast culture, going against the grain, remaining authentic. Love or hate it because he didn’t do the slaps, he made a very deliberate choice about what he wanted to share and how. How do the pieces of your story come together across these different platforms and are they consistent?
Social media is OVERWHELMING. I get it, believe me. And honestly, I’ve been dedicated to thinking a little less about it in this season and focusing on my writing. But the reality is, it’s a season. When I’m ready to promote the next thing, best believe I’ll be here, brainstorming and figuring out how to expand the message.
The key is honoring who you are and where you are, and trusting that it will find its way to the people who need your words.
The AWP Award Series is an annual competition for the publication of excellent new book-length works. The prizes are supported by the AWP Award Series Endowments. The competition is open to all authors writing in English, regardless of nationality or residence, and is available to published and unpublished authors alike. (Closes Feb. 28)
The inaugural Rumpus Prize for Poetry, Fiction, and Creative Nonfiction! The Rumpus has a long history of championing emerging and established poets, fiction writers, and essayists, and we’re pleased to announce a new way the magazine will bring attention to great writing. All submissions will be read by The Rumpus‘s editorial team, and our final judges will be Kaveh Akbar (Poetry), Rachel Khong (Fiction), and Megan Stielstra (Creative Nonfiction). (Closes Mar. 2)
The Future Perfect Fellowship is a perfect opportunity for emerging journalism talent, subject-matter experts looking to move into journalism — especially in our key areas, like animal welfare, AI, biotechnology and global development/health — or established, early to mid-career writers who have shown expertise in some of our subjects and who think they can benefit from a year working and publishing with our team. (Closes Mar. 16).
