♦Welcome to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop!♦
Topic #458
What was the best thing that happened to you in 2024? (Writing or otherwise?) The worst?
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There was a lot of learning to be grateful for in 2025 despite the struggles that build against regular people across the board. Because of these things, I count myself among those weathering the stormy sea. I can rally folks to the fight, and be a light in the dark. My favorite part of doing okay (no not great) is the mood to lift others up.
This past year, I realized my power to lift others up. While I struggle to get the message out about myself, learning the fact that I can touch on something and put energy behind it on the behalf of others and create some success in their life is reassuring. I’m not a selfish person. Seeing others excel fills me with hope, and helps me realize that I do know how to be a help. Eventually, that will translate to my own endeavors.
When you learn that a helper role is a gift, you take a lot of heart in that, and it rejuvenates your energy. I have had a smile on my face more than I haven’t in 2025. That’s an incredible change. Wouldn’t you call that good fortune? At least it is important learning.
In addition, a top learning experience about social media and the way it works against the user (business or private) in the effort to amass profits came along. The system is set up to benefit the richest corporations and individuals, or those willing to part with a lot of money on a gamble. Very few individuals organically grow on these sites, regardless of what they may tell you. Influencers make themselves through the artful craft of paid space.
The missing piece from this learning: the cost on average paid for space, and the resultant return on that investment. From a business perspective, that piece of information is of great interest to authors. Just creating posts, videos, and being live isn’t enough. Did we think that it would be? There are windows for the effectiveness of tactics, and almost all of them are exhausted at this point.
And, that’s the point! The larger publishers and corporations competing with the smaller business and artists want to crush us out. It returns their control over the industries they feel entitled to, and keeps the revenue in their pockets. It doesn’t matter you only make fifty to a hundred bucks a month. Multiply that by thousands of artists and you see how this siphons off profits from the big boys. It’s cutthroat.
Here is some learning I can impart to you: You absolutely are entitled to your niche of the world, and not having to move over for these behemoths who want their cut of everything. Greed kills innovation and fair business. They can afford to outpace your marketing and outreach a million times over. They take out many of us in one swipe. Only a few survive. And, the fact of the matter is, those who succeed despite this don’t have to be that great at what they do, they just have to be liked by people, or people feel they should like them because they seem popular.
Regardless of someone randomly making it upstream, It still takes capital the majority don’t have. That’s a tough place to be in. Hear me out: keep fighting for your spot in the sun. That said, don’t waste time or resources sticking to a plan that isn’t working. Exercise more analysis on the things you do to get out there. Fortunately, social media sites do provide those tools to you. Use them against the system. That’s a learning curve worth working on.
This year (2025), I dropped my business status on TikTok because it was not helping me at all. In fact, it was hurting me. I changed my rating to 18 and older, dropped the business aspect, and I’m going to test how the reach is after this. Prior to, I was given random violations for my videos, had them throttled from views, told they couldn’t be in the for you area because of something a bot erroneously flagged, and the benefits were non-existent. Other business shuttered around me, and many gave up, some lost their accounts battling with bot moderators for false flagging.
Whereas Tumblr and Meta just don’t show anything you post to anyone who follows you, TikTok seeks to extort ad funds from the user. If you don’t pony up, the throttling gets worse and worse. They also don’t improve your viewership unless you post a lot–a real lot. The amount you’d need to post is untenable.
This knowledge is a boon. Once you know how they operate against you, you can start operating around it. That’s new ground to work from. I don’t know how that will play out in the end, but I remember that my videos did much better without the business account. Plus, I can post my link in my bio when I’ve reached 1,000 followers as opposed to 10,000 previously. There was no reason to be a business account anymore, other than careful fair use of music protections.
On the up side, I have opened a BlueSky account and sit at 11,000 followers. I’ve connected with some really great folks. The whole mood of the place is user friendly and focused on the social for real. We get along instead of fighting, and we share our stuff to people who are genuinely interested. Will it stay this way? All things change, but so far so good. I’ll take the win while it’s present.
In addition, this year was the year I took my little one to Disneyland in California. It was our first time! I’ve wanted to make the trek west since I was small, and I finally could afford to do so. That is such a big win for my heart and soul, you have no idea! The trip was amazing but short. To tell the truth, I liked that. We were a little a pressured to get it all in, but we didn’t linger or have time for long faces. Everything was positive.
Counting my blessings through 2024 let me know that I have a lot to be grateful for, and I kept a smile on my face more than I have in a very long time. Despite how hard things are getting financially for all of us, I believe we can weather this, as long as we pushback and demand our space. 2025 is going to teach us how. We got this!
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11,000 followers on BlueSky! That’s impressive!
Yeah! I did not expect it in the least, but I am hoping it will be good for our hop. I am sharing our posts there.
2024 was the year I fell out of love with social media. I have no desire to play their games (or give them large chunks of my cash), just to be visible to my friends.
I hear this! I feel the same. I don’t have the expense account that large firms do, and i shouldn’t be penalized. I think that companies should struggle and be throttled, because they don’t need the reach at all. They just crush anyone else.
Glad you were able to make the trip to Disneyland. I’m sure your daughter will remember the visit for a long time. Regarding marketing, I’ve finally realised that nothing works and all the hassle just to sell just a handful of books isn’t worth it.
Thank you! She was so excited and run completely ragged! I have realized this too. We need to just write for ourselves and be satisfied in the accomplishment, which is impressive all on its own! I mean, look at what you’ve done! That’s fantastic!
Sounds like a pretty good year overall. Here’s hoping 2025 is even better! @samanthabwriter from
Balancing Act
I can’t complain–I mean, of course I could, but I like focusing on the wins. I feel better with that anyway. Here is to a great new year for each of us!