Writer, musician, wizardly guide to platform independence
From Joshua Heath Scott:
“As artists and creatives, we face the challenge of standing out against the digital tide. Han explores the importance of making real, physical art that holds emotions, memories, and true community value, unlike the fleeting nature of digital information.”
This really makes me want to start putting together a print version of Social Media Escape Club. Of printing photos every month. Of making newspaper projects with Newspaper Club.
Via Zach
Talking about leaving social media lately has become less about the logistics and technology and more about the people. Just… PEOPLE.
Like, knowing every single answer to everyone’s situation of moving away from social media is impossible, but talking about the process. Figuring out what feels right. Talking about the flow and rhythm, the natural vibes of how you want to operate.
Less about tactics and more about the conversations we can have to figure these things out.
I did a workshop about ABOUT PAGES recently, and did it without trying to be the authority, or the instructor, the EXPERT. No PowerPoint, just vibes.
But people learned and figured things out from the group dynamic. We’re all in this together, learning together, sharing our collective knowledge and experiences for the better of the group.
I’ve exported all my Google emails in .mbox format and threw them into my Apple Mail app, which I don’t ever use, but it’ll be there for safekeeping (and easy searching).
I’ve exported all my Google Drive docs as xls and doc files. Anything shared with clients and such, I told them to make a copy so they own it.
I’ve been changing a lot of emails I use for services away from this account, so if anything happens when I transfer my MX records, it won’t matter so much.
I think I’ll do that this weekend – copy all my existing MX records from my DNS host. Then update the new info from Fastmail, so all those emails go into my existing account. I don’t get a lot of emails at this “work” account, so it’ll be fine.
I have a Gmail account I can use if I need to view / share Google Docs or Sheets.
Email is taken care of.
Those are literally the two things I used Google Workspace for. Years ago I worked with some VAs, and they needed email accounts with my business, and that worked out well. But hey, Google Workspace is like $7/mo now, for something that I don’t really need. It’s going up to $8.40/mo for all this new AI bullshit that I really don’t need, so whatever.
The $100 I save per year can buy some groceries, which is lot more useful than the garbage AI that Google is pushing.
I love the idea of having a blog that you update on occasion, more often than social media.
Those platforms made is so that every time you post something, something happens – usually a like. Then a comment.
When you post on your blog, the reaction isn’t quite so quick. Or sending a newsletter. The feedback loop is longer, and the social media platform makers knew this.
Make their product light up when you post something. Make it as simple as possible to post a video, go live, five photos. Try doing that with most apps for modern blogging platforms or website builders.
In school I could find the rockers because they had mullets, Bon Jovi and Motley Crue shirts. We obviously couldn’t carry around our guitars, but there were signals.
Growing up, I didn’t sit in the hallways and randomly yell things as everyone walked past.
“BMX! Dungons and Dragons! Guns N’ Roses!”
That’d just get me some weird looks, right?
Instead, I did what all of us shy nerds did – I carried around my BMX Plus magazines. Finally found an Anthrax shirt. Got some Airwalks from the JCPenny catalog.
Each of those things were a signal.
Once we found our tribe, we didn’t stay hanging out in the hallways at school, or the food court at the mall. We spent our evenings in our friend’s bedrooms and basements, learning Misfits’s covers and such.
This whole “hopping to different platforms to find out people” is a new thing that came about in the last decade, and it looks like it’s burning to the ground.
Start talking to the few people around you, getting a little deeper. Send a few emails. Plan a Zoom call. Meet in real life.
Boost your signals together, with other people.
NIKON Z fc
Recently took Sheldon, the 37 year old turtle, all around the Brandywine Community Library for some portraits.
I’ve been taking photos since high school, from film to digital and back again. Nearing 50, I picked up a Nikon ZFC just to get back in the groove of manual mode, and it’s led to some fun opportunities like this; a fun little time to volunteer my enthusiasm and skills so the local library would have some images to use online.
Saying yes to more opportunities to this, even if they’re out of my element.
Angel figurine photo by Seth Werkheiser
A rich person wants many things. A sick person wants one thing. And wow, that’s been me this week – a sick person. It was too bad, but it was enough to wreck my normal routine, especially running. I had just done back to back 30 mile weeks, but I know fitness doesn’t disappear in a few days, especially since I’m not training for the Olympics or anything like that.
We are humans, not robots. Progress isn’t linear.
Let people get lost in your world.
If you’re an artist, and you’re shoveling everything onto social media, you’re missing the fuck out.
Every smart phone ships with a web browser.
Not everyone has a Facebook account anymore in 2025.
No one in the U.S. can install TikTok right now.
People are ditching Instagram and Twitter because of reasons.
You might not realize this, but some people fucking love music.
Like, that get band names and lyrics tattooed on their bodies. They wear nothing but band shirts. They dig through bins at record shops. They go to shows on Tuesday night.
The people who just load up automated playlists? Those aren’t your people.
Give people who discover you the ability to fall in fucking love with what you do.
If people find your music on YouTube, or Spotify, or Bandcamp, they can click on a URL and be on your website.
But if you website is just everything you already have on YouTube, and Spotify (a bunch of embeds), and a link to Bandsintown, well, what’s the point?
People still buy vinyl and CDs and cassettes. Yeah, a lot of people stream music these days, too, but fuck them.
Let people fall in love with you.
Give me a fucking bio. Where are you even from? What other bands were you in?
Stop posting every god damn bit of promo, behind the scenes, and assorted other photos on social media platforms and put that shit on your website.
Let people fall into your world and get lost in how damn cool you are.
Uploading all your cool vibes and good taste to fucking Facebook? In 2025? For 96% of your “followers” to never see?
In this economy?
Google changed it’s motto from “Don’t be evil” to “Do the right thing” in 2015. And now a decade later the “right thing” has taken quite a turn.
“Google on Tuesday updated its ethical guidelines around artificial intelligence, removing commitments not to apply the technology to weapons or surveillance.”
I’m so glad to be moving away from all Google Products this year.
(From the Washington Post, via Hacker News)
