More Than Meets the Eye

Writing has been a core pillar of my life since I was able to understand words. As early as 6 years old, I was making homemade storybooks out of paper, crayons, and glue.

Later, it took the form of writing articles for the school newspaper, posting to online forums, roleplaying in online games, and eventually, I got paid to write professionally.

Once money entered the equation, my relationship to writing started changing. My spark was dim and difficult to find in the hellscape of capitalism. The pressure to constantly create high-performing and high-volume content nearly crushed my creative soul.

Was it really worth monetizing this passion? Keeping up with the Jones’s on SEO optimization, advertisements, and the exhausting task of staying “relevant” siphoned all of my creative energy with none to spare for pleasure. I had nothing left to give for what I really loved: heartful storytelling.

To top it all off, amidst my existential questioning, open source AI came to be. It could generate fully-written, professional copy on any topic for any platform in fewer than 30 seconds.

I was torn.

On one hand, I was grateful for automation assisting with the unreasonable expectations of my job.

On the other hand, I was pissed off from being unable to compete with something so powerful to make a living.

As a result, I took a massive step back from writing and went into another direction entirely with my career.

It has been 5 years since I’ve written anything publicly. It feels like my voice is finally starting to return. My livelihood isn’t riding on my passion anymore. My passion is mine and mine to keep. My gift is mine and mine to give.

I thought that monetizing what I loved doing most—writing stories—would bring me financial abundance and a perfect, aligned life. I was very wrong. I was abandoning my authenticity for the mighty dollar. A trade I didn’t know I bargained for until it was too late.

As a result of this experience, a pillar of my creative life was demolished. It took 5 years to build it back, all because I flew too close to the sun. Don’t let the same thing happen to you.

Monetizing your gifts is a slippery slope to self-betrayal. I don’t say that to take the wind out of your sails, but instead encourage you to think again about your dream career as a Professional [Insert Art Form Here]. It comes with a hidden cost. Are you willing to pay it?