The Most Wholesome Thing You Can Get From Putting Your Work on the Internet
By: Max Phillips
Tags: Self Improvement, Productivity, Online Business, Creativity, Lifestyle

The Most Wholesome Thing You Can Get From Putting Your Work on the Internet

Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash

When I started online writing nine months ago, I felt alone.

For months, it was just me and my drafts, hopping from one article to the next.

I always read about the importance of networking and how I should connect with a new writer once a week. Despite doing that, I never garnered a sense of togetherness.

Websites like Medium and Quora allow online writers to have a home — negating the need for a website of your own. Even they have thousands of writers, all of whom are trying to climb the ladder and get to the top of the pile like you are.

When explaining what I do to a friend of mine, he asked: “so you just sit at home, typing all day?” Well damn, I thought to myself. He’s stripped it to the bone in one sentence.

Of course, I write because I love doing so. If my writing touches anyone, I see it as a massive win. You could argue that anyone who sits and types into a computer is a writer. That isn’t the case.

Nicholas Cole, the author of The Art and Business of Online Writing, says a writer is someone who can keep going after six months, success or not. Even if an article sucks, if they keep going, they are a writer.

You can apply the same principle to all online work. If a self-proclaimed Youtuber stops after a few of her videos flop, then she is not a YouTuber.

Typically, new writers look at the successes of famous ones and decide they want that. But most don’t. They want the life associated with success, but not the work required.

Dedicated writers, YouTubers, and all kinds of artists understand that it is mostly a lonely life. I don’t have any friends or family who do it, so I always have an explanation attached to any job questions.

That is what makes connections the most wholesome thing you get from putting your work on the internet.

It took about seven months for me to make some valuable connections. Sure, I had briefly spoken to some people, but those conversations quickly faded into obscurity.

What started as a hopeful message to a fellow writer led to me becoming a founding partner in a private writer’s group. Now, I have access to some incredible writers’ work. We edit each other’s drafts and support our articles.

Not only is it wholesome, but it also brings a sense of community to the process. Now, the internet feels smaller and more manageable. I can see where I’m going.

By sticking with online writing, your community will develop. You’ll have writers you admire who eventually begin to take notice of your work.

Moreover, having a connection with them gives you access to their creative process, potentially giving you ideas for future articles.

I’ve edited some writer’s work from the Netherlands, Germany, India, the UK, and the USA. If you think you knew everything there is to know about online writing, I assure you there is something new you can learn.

More than anything, putting your work on the internet, whether it be writing, videos, music, or anything in between, teaches you that you are not alone. That is what the internet is perfect for.

Sometimes, you will get lost in your draft, as the edit seems impossible. Your connections can help you find your way through, helping you hit the publish button.

Find more meaningful connections than the Facebook groups you’re in, most of which ask the same questions repeatedly. Join a Slack channel, or ask a creator if you can call them.

Connections are ready to be made. You just have to ask.