Goodbye TikTok

Social media & the illusion of control

Hi friend,

I initially set out to write this newsletter for the sole purpose of informing you that I’m no longer on TikTok.

So, if you try to tag me there, I won’t be there. And if you see someone who says they’re me… they’re not, because my account is gone.

But as you’ve probably learned by now, if given the opportunity to make something an introspective yap, I’m gonna take it.

Something something, never met an emotion I haven’t felt intensely, something something.

ANYWAY. Here I am, staring at this newsletter and wondering why I feel so weird about closing down a social media platform that I absolutely did not want to stay on after it changed hands the other week (though I have no illusions that Meta is a better place to be hanging out, let’s be clear).

But you know… I met a lot of y’all through my TikTok. The Curse of Saints went viral there as I writing it, and some of you have been in my corner since that fateful day in 2021, cheering me on every step of the way.

So, yeah. In a way, it does feel strange and a little bittersweet to say goodbye to a platform that played a significant role in not just building my audience (an introducing me to some amazing friends), but helping me get a foot in the door as a debut author.

And if I’m being really, really honest with you… I’m nervous about what it will mean for me professionally now that I don’t have it to show publishers. As if somehow my work (and my readership!!) can be reduced to a stat that’s swayed by an algorithm we don’t control.

And that’s the whole problem, right?

This is the struggle for authors when it comes to social media: it gives us the illusion of control in an industry where we have very little of it.

I know for me, at least, that’s certainly true. I’ve been caught in that vicious thought cycle more than I care to admit. It’s partly why it took me two weeks of hemming and hawing and discussing with my agent to make a decision I had already made in my mind and heart.

If I have an audience, I can remain valuable to my publishers. I can show demand for my work. I can hope that I keep getting the opportunity to publish stories.

But at what cost?

When it came to TikTok, that cost just wasn’t worth it for me.

So here we are — the end of the TikTok road!

I don’t know that I have a neat way to tie this all together. Maybe this whole thing is a lesson for me in giving up control, or the illusion of it.

It’s uncomfy, but I’m proud of myself. And I hope you stick with me here (and on Discord and Instagram) so we can keep being in community together. Because that’s the part that really matters!

All my love,

Kate

P.S. Speaking of things that really matter:

The DHS bill is currently being negotiated, which means this is the time to fight for restrictions on ICE. I have been yelling about this daily on Instagram, but please, please, please call your senators (and representatives) and demand the changes you want to see. I found this substack by Ben Sheehan to be so helpful.

Do not let overwhelm keep you frozen in inaction, friend. We need you in this fight.