How To Combat Loneliness As a Creative Person

Tips for online and offline connection

This image feels so lonely tumblr girl vibes IYKYK

Hello and thanks for reading, it really means a lot to me and it helps me to feel a little less lonely, which is the topic of today’s newsletter.

We all get the blues, in fact I think creative people get them more often than most, so today I want to gently remind you of the connections that can be had IRL and online.

Before we dive in I want to let you know that today’s newsletter is brought to you by VALOI and their nifty EASY35 home scanning kit so you can save money and enjoy bringing your film negatives to life in the comfort of your own home. Click the button below to read more about VALOI and access a 10% discount on all products.

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More lonely Sofia Coppola vibes

If You Enjoy Someone’s Work - Let Them Know!

We have all become increasingly more passive when it comes to our consumption online - I feel like we used to connect more on social platforms and now it’s more like this voyeuristic unhealthy habit that doesn’t result in any back forth between people.

I’m always banging on about how we can be better online and kind of defending the space, because I do genuinely feel like it’s given me so much and for all its faults it really has so much to offer if we just use it wisely and can exercise will, lot’s of it.

My suggestion here is that if you really enjoy someone’s

Podcast

YouTube Channel

Blog/substack

Photography or any other artistic output

Book

Vibe

Whatever…

LET THEM KNOW!!!

Tell this person why you enjoy what they create and pass along your admiration because it will mean the world to them and could be the difference between them being like “I suck and I’m gonna stop” to “I feel motivated to keep creating and putting my work into the world if this is the effect it’s having on people”

I’m super guilty of not doing this and instead I passively and kind of creepily watch video after video of an artist on YouTube and don’t ever comment! It’s strange because that person doesn’t know you are watching, so it’s a one sided relationship, but it doesn’t have to be.

We all complain about how disconnected we feel despite seemingly being more connected than ever, but is this the internet’s fault or is it our cautious and closed off nature when it comes to telling others how we feel about their work?

As someone who shares long form ideas multiple times a week I really appreciate people getting in touch and telling me what they get out of the content or what impact it had on them. It genuinely keeps me going and maybe that means I’m fragile AF, but maybe it also means that we aren’t meant to be creating and sharing with so many people without seeing and hearing real feedback or conversation around the work.

I don’t share just to share - I share for YOU.

Sharing for YOU is much more fulfilling than sharing purely for my own reasons.

Kind of like if I’m home alone I’ll just eat yoghurt straight outta the tub at my desk for lunch but if Lux is here I’ll go to the effort and make a meal, because it means more when someone else is involved…at least to me that’s how it is.

So next time you see an image that you love or a video you think was helpful, a book that you couldn’t put down or a gig that sounded really awesome, tell the artist or the creator!

I find this doesn’t always result in a back and forth but it’s still worth doing. Sometimes it does though, and it can surprise you and it might even lead to a casual chat here and there, whether online or in person and that helps to keep the creative energy flowing in our daily lives and make us feel more connected.

This set of images from 2020 were very underexposed and the original scans I had didn’t have much colour or detail. Being able to bring this much of the image out with the easy35 was so satisfying.

Leave The House

This is a reminder for me who is nearly always at home these days for various reasons. Right now it’s winter, my son seems to be such a homebody (as well as my husband), work is busy, it’s also expensive to go outside these days right?

If we want to lower the screen time and let go of the phone then we need to venture out more in search of screen free activities and experiences.

When it comes to creativity it’s easy to retreat into your little cubby of creation and stay hovelled away, but remember there is probably something cool going on that you could get involved in if you could just get over the hurdle that is social anxiety of actual interaction with other human beings.

For example I recently attended a local pop up show put on by Her Exposure and it was great to see art in a physical space, but also chat with fellow creatives and parents about life etc.

It felt good to be out and amongst it all and although that sounds obvious it’s something we do need to be reminded of.

Having a look at what’s going on locally, big or small and pencilling in the time to enjoy and embrace it will help to fill your cup and make you feel less alone if you are like me and work solo on a lot of your projects and can get in your head a bit.

And if there isn’t much going on where you live maybe consider being the one to kick an event or activity off!

Proof I do leave the house, even at night sometimes!

Collaboration Is The Ultimate Connection

Working on something with someone else can either be a disaster or an amazing experience. It’s important to collaborate with the right people and ensure it’s a good fit so be mindful of that, but all in all it normally offers new perspectives, accountability and of course, connection.

Put yourself out there and ask if anyone wants to create together or merge both your skills to bring a project to life. I always attribute any success I’ve had to being part of an ongoing collaboration between myself and Lux. Together we are able to say yes to more and we bring different skills to the table. This results in an outcome we couldn’t achieve as separate entities and I truly believe that when collaboration is done right it’s like a superpower!

If there is an idea you’ve had for a long time but something is holding you back whether it be your mindset or a perceived lack of skill or knowledge, reach out to potential collaborators and turn it into an opportunity for all parties to put their best or most creative foot forward.

I always think of cinema and how it’s like the ultimate collaborative effort because there are so many moving parts it’s nearly impossible to do it all on your own and that’s what makes it such a captivating and diverse medium both to create and consume.

So consider the collab and start reaching out to see who wants to do something creative with you!

Let me know if you have any other tips for connection and accessing community when it comes to being a creative person in today’s world

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