After my homepage got hit with multiple DDOS attacks for no apparent reason (other than people programming bots to attack WordPress sites), I was about to give up on writing content online and stick to working on music for Bandcamp and other streaming media services (I’m on Spotify and many other streaming audio sites).
However, once I discovered Steemit and the many ways it can inspire someone to be creative, I was inspired to start writing again. Here are the ways it helps to inspire creativity (that I’ve noticed), and I’m sure more ways will be uncovered (that I am unaware of) in the comments below!
Multiple Ways to Be Creative
I’ve enjoyed being creative in many different formats over the years, but the ones I’m currently pursuing are brewing, music, writing, and photography. While there’s no place (or way) to share actual beer online, there are certainly many places that music, writing, and photography can be shared.
That said, those places are often spread out across the Internet, which means managing multiple sites and spreading oneself thinner. Steemit incorporates a lot of these together and streamlines things for the creator - there’s DSound for audio, DTube for video (which is how I discovered Steemit in the first place), and Steepshot for photography, which more than suits my creative needs.
As an aside, a tipping cryptocurrency for brewers would be cool - something that could be incorporated with a beer review site. The better the rating, the better the tip! It’d also be a more reinforcing indicator of knowing which beers are connecting with the people that drink them and which ones should be brewed more often.
Removing the Middlemen
This is the most important facet to me. I would rather spend my time being creative rather than spend my time promoting my work on a bunch of different social media sites.
New social media sites seem to pop up all the time that only cover one part of the creative spectrum. I can see those working for people that are focused on one type of creativity, but even then, people are spread across so many social media platforms that one has to sign up for multiple social media sites and promote to get people to visit the site where the creativity is posted.
With Steemit, everything is incorporated. All blogs, music pieces, videos, and photos that I post to Steemit (and its related apps) will show up on my personal page. All I really need to do to promote my work is create and participate by commenting on and discussing other people’s creations. I need to work on that latter part more and I will once I get more accustomed to everything and find more people to follow that are creating art which I find interesting.
Compensation
Some artists will say that “art is its own reward”. I agree with the sentiment, as being creative is the most rewarding act that I’ve partaken in (giving is a close second). However, getting compensated for the creativity produced adds to the rewarding feeling (as I’ve discovered with brewing).
This has also been streamlined compared to other sites and services that provide compensation for creativity, in that they will arbitrate how much compensation will be received and it will take months for the artist to receive that compensation. With Steemit, payment is determined by the Steemit community (as it should be with art) and said payment is received in a week. Brilliant!
No Resting on Laurels
That said, once the payment for a piece of art is received on Steemit, the art is done with its earning potential. I can see some people taking umbrage with that, but I liken it to brewing - once the entirety of a batch of beer has been consumed, no more income can be made from it. Another batch of that same beer can be made, but it requires the creative process to be embarked upon again.
With the traditional model, art can keep earning money ad infinitum - though even with that realm, the primary amount of earning is done shortly after the art is released. There are exceptions, but those exceptions tend to come through community-based curation.
I like the way Steemit has their system set up, because it motivates an artist to keep creating if they want to be compensated for their work. The traditional model has the potential for paying out indefinitely, but it requires a lot more self-promotion (which I loathe). With Steemit, you create, you comment on the works that others create, and momentum builds. It doesn’t require excessive social media pandering.
The Future of Online Art is Blockchain-Based
I think people are starting to realize (as I have) how fragmented modern life is becoming and are doing their best to find ways to streamline the process. If I can spend more time doing what I want and less time dealing with distractions, it will make me a happier man.
Steemit has found a way to get rid of a lot of the distraction that comes with social media, so kudos to them for doing so and I can’t wait to keep creating new content here!
Wow man, such luck that I ran across your post! You've really summarized a lot of the sentiments that I think I felt and have been feeling about Steemit. I spent almost 3 years posting pictures on Instagram, but I found that it became disheartening because of the lack of compensation, lack of creative freedom, and a lack of oppertunity to share more than just one photo... Keep up your blogs, I will be following them and reading them for sure :)
Thanks Tristan! I wish you the best of luck with your photography and I'll do my best to keep putting out quality content!