I made a substack because it felt like the right thing to do. To join the leagues of cyber-ingenue blogging warriors, to echo ceaselessly back at myself in this nice hollow interface. Originally I wanted to complain about a tiktok trend: a particular genre of self referential, cross-platform videos that fall keenly into a most abundant irony valley. However, after writing paragraphs and paragraphs, and allowing the duet I made from my own tiktok account fester with condescending comments, I decided against presenting it here, in exchange for peace. I’m tired of complaining about the way people post. It’s exhausting, and I wish you guys didn’t make me have to do it all the time.
I am trying to figure the language of substack as a platform, which has been difficult considering I’m a bad reader (this is something to which I often admit, when really I’m a good reader, but for purely shallow, aesthetic reasons). It’s hard to care, I don’t check my email – I’m sure we share in this somehow. I’m sure you’re struggling to care about my uncertain drivel (or submitting to not caring, I won’t take it personal). Be patient with me, I’m still acclimating to the intimate climate of blog, newsletter, email chain. Vulnerable, fleshy, deliberate.
In the same way that college language students and my dad insist you need only to immerse yourself in a culture to learn the language, you can only really know what is appropriate online based on whatever community you assimilate into. There are certain thoughts, jokes, ideas that make more sense in the language of one platform compared to another – sometimes a truly vapid thought must be accompanied by the backdrop of a deadpan selfie to complete the tone of an instagram story, rather than the cold serifed contrast of twitter daymode. It’s about knowing the audience as well as you know the interface. Here I am, unlearned but eager. I’m skipping ahead to the part where I know how to say it.
All this meaning: I’m still working on it. I am interesting, just still figuring out how prove it to you. Tell your friends. I love you.