You'll be judged no matter what you do; So you might as well be judged for being you
Grow a thick skin and get out there to fight for your intuition and creative freedom
Do you dream to set out on an unconventional journey?
You know the one that gets everyone around you uncomfortable? Where playing the safe card is no longer an option?
The majority likes the idea in theory, but very few actually set out to do it in practise. Why?
Out of fear of judgement.
Because you know you will be judged.
But in fact, you’re being judged in everything you do anyway, so why not being judged being you instead of a socially accepted version of you?
At least you can rest assured that you’re being judged for something productive and you’ll be more liberated knowing that you have nothing to respond to.
You don’t owe anyone any justification. Especially in the field of creativity and arts, which is so subjective anyway.
Some people will love what you do, others will hate it. There’s rarely a middle way of “Urm, I could buy half the painting, but let’s put the other half in the trash”.
With writing it gets a bit trickier. The road is narrower. More of a slippery slope.
In the traditional track you’ve got middle-men and editors that waters out what you originally did in order to establish a solid representation (I don’t say that this is inherently bad or good, it just is).
Here on Substack (the platform I use to host this newsletter-blog), it’s a wild park. There are no filters except your own self-censorship.
I assume paywalls to function as filters to some extent too. It avoids trolls to enter comment sections when they aren’t invited. Very few trolls will pay money to troll, so they’ll automatically pivot for the free letters.
Why does writing tend to be more provocative than visual arts?
Because everyone reads their own reality into your writing. Even more so when it’s being sent out as a direct email.
It makes me think of a woman called Jana Söderberg, who wrote a terrific book in Swedish with a title that roughly translates to: “What you say and what I hear”.
The emphasis is on the given miss in all communication, where whatever you say (or write) has the risk of being interpreted in a completely skewed way for the listener/reader depending on where they’re at on their own journey.
What’s rude for some, is inspiring to others.
What’s awful for some, is encouraging to others.
What’s straight out ugly for some, is beautiful to others.
Where it gets even more interesting is how the perception of your writing can be different for the SAME reader if they choose to read it more than ones.
In the morning they may have felt agitated and got triggered by your thought-provoking text (read: the reader took it personal). Whereas in the afternoon they were able to distance themselves personally from the text and read with more objective eyes realising that “Hey, this wasn’t about me at all! This is actually pretty insightful…”
To write is exposing. To write you need courage. Know that you will be judged so be selective with what you want to be judged for:
Do you want to be someone who dares to try it anyway.
Or someone who takes the safe route, you know, just in case?
Thank you so much for reading!
Elin, x
Hope you enjoyed this thought-provoking essay! If you did, please let me know in the comments below so we can expand on the conversation… It sure is a tricky one, yet also incredibly interesting with no right or wrong asnwers (as always!)
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BTS (behind the scenes):
I appreciate you being here, especially you who were able to distance yourself from my last post “You’re invited to unsubscribe” and see it as general food for thought and encouragement more than anything to keep going.
Today’s essay was a direct spontaneous out-pour of words in response to some of those who took me up on my invitation and decided to send some of their unsolicited advice for how I should run my publication.
Thank God I already have experience in this or I would’ve maybe chosen the exit door. After all, I already have another art business which I love and I sometimes ask myself why I pour so much of my heart and soul into this new writing venture… until I remember, that I always dreamt to be a writer.
To make art and write is who I am. And I owe it to myself to give a wholehearted try to fulfil my writer dream.
Much love to you all who are here on the journey with me. Here are five other essays I’ve written that immediately pop into my mind that are highly relevant and that you may enjoy too:
Stop worrying what others will think
Hi there, new here?
I’m Elin, Swedish (expat) artist and mother of two who have plunged into the unknown of Substack as a new writing home. Despite having 500k+ across mainstream social media platforms for my embroidery art, I decided to start afresh here. It’s hard, thrilling, heavy and joyful all in ones. Come and join me for the ride if you haven’t done so already!
You can also check out the how, why, who and what in the post below:
I used to do so much to try to make sure I wasn’t “misunderstood” by others, both in my life and my writing (disclaimers everywhere!). The day I finally understood that I cannot control others’ perceptions of me, I was free. This is truly a revolutionary place to get to in your consciousness.
I’m one of those people who others think doesn’t care about how I’m perceived, but it couldn’t be farther from the truth. It’s a harsh reality that so many of us struggle with.