On platform incentives & supporting indies
I used to have a Substack, but I don’t really like spending time on Substack, and I don’t write frequently enough to justify that kind of a commitment from supporters of mine.
They also now have clarified their policy on censorship, and it’s one that clarifies their dependence on venture capital and desire to grow and profit above foster healthy discourse (at least to me).
I’ve been feeling a pull to get “off Substack” because I don’t fit the vibe. More importantly, I don’t feel great about my writing being there and I don’t have the stamina to write frequently enough to survive in the dynamics of a platform like that, where frequent engagement and name yields results.
Coincidentally, Bandcamp (one of the services that hosts my music) is going through its own mess of a different nature rooted in the same incentives: money and growth. So I’m not sure about its long-term viability.
Working for Buffer has really bolstered my support for the value of independence – the notion that independence allows a business to stay true to its values. This goes for both myself and the businesses I choose to rely on.
So why do I rely on services run by folks who are directly incentivized to adhere to values that aren’t aligned with mine?
My new place on the Internet
I’ve got a new, simpler, chiller website now too. Now that I work at a bootstrapped startup that has & exhibits values of transparency, reflection and optimism, I’ve reflected a lot on my own usage of the Internet and internet products. I’m increasingly frustrated with the state of venture capital and large social & entertainment platforms (which isn’t great given I need to promote music right now lolz), and I’ve found myself wanting to divest from these things where it makes sense.
- My website is now built on Blot, an extremely simple and powerful service that spins up a fully managed site & blog for you using text files in a (private) Dropbox folder. (Blot also supports Git-based syncing, which I’m considering as an alternative to Dropbox, which is also a publicly traded company.)
- My newsletter is now hosted on Buttondown, a (free to start!) newsletter service built & managed by one dude named Justin.
- My music is currently available on all the major streaming services, but I primarily promote my music via Bandcamp because it’s where you can support me directly. Fun fact: last year, Bandcamp was acquired by the company that makes Fortnite, which is super weird. There’s nowhere really better than it though, other than maybe hosting it myself.
This is something I’ll continue to explore and probably write about.
