It has been a few weeks now since I started this project, and I have learnt two very important truths. Firstly, it has become crystal clear to me how inept I am at social media! Prior to starting this project I have stayed away from Facebook and Instagram, and I never had a twitter or Pinterest account. I have found myself floundering in tide of glittery posts, flashing images, and over-the-top captions which seem to dominate the platform.
Of course I knew this before I signed up—I wanted to show that historical poets can still compete for attention in today's world. It just highlights that content alone doesn't cut it on social media (and in some cases it is little to no content and clever marketing). The most important part of social media though, is the engagement between accounts. And this is always going to be my undoing.
“The most important part
of social media
is the engagement between accounts”
I have long struggled to communicate how I feel, to accept or give praise (and especially criticism), in circumstances when it is personal. Even though I am writing through a medium this is somehow evident. However, there are some positives—which brings me to my second point.
Despite my frustration, there have been a few kind and genuine comments that have kept me going. The odd person who has seen the work and gained something from it. And this is the whole purpose of the project—to connect people with different poets and poetry through a different medium.
And in the process I have discovered new things too. New words, new poets (thanks to Shivelight for Gerard Manley Hopkins!). But most of all, underneath the plethora of spam accounts, there are an army of genuine poets who are just seeking someone to view and appreciate their work—and that I is something I guess we all have in common.
