It can be hard to create, knowing it may reach no one. Yearning for your art to touch people, reach minds across the planet and shift people’s thoughts. Maybe you have a friend who cares, or an auntie that is proud of you but no matter what hashtags you use or times you post you can't reach "your audience". The people you want to be speaking to, the ones that you believe will want to read your work. The people that you know you can connect with, if only they could find you.
Many people will say that being criticised is the hardest thing to face. I would argue being ignored is worse. I don't mean people don't care, some really do! They just don’t know you exist yet.
A speck wafting through the wind hoping someone will notice you. How do you keep going when you aren't being seen?
As a person who is still invisible, waiting for that sparkly moment called "the break", I will tell you this. Until that moment comes, if it comes at all, you must keep going. It may seem pointless, frivolous even. Why try if no one listens? But I promise it will pay off.
Maybe you won't ever become insta-famous. Perhaps the only people that will ever read your posts or look at your photos will be friends and family. Despite that, you will grow. Your craft will get better, and you will feel good about yourself. Not always, yes you will still long for that splash, but you will at least be doing what you love.
Perhaps along the way, you will become more confident, prouder to share your work. Sure enough to reach out to people you didn't think you were ever game enough to connect with. Somewhere along that journey, you may find your true reason for sharing your work even if that reason is simply to make something beautiful in this world.
Maybe one day when you have years of content and growth online people will find you. They will read all of your unseen articles. Spend hours going back through your past work looking with wonder at all you have created and marvelling at how far you have come.
We know not what the future holds. Give your work your best shot, and let it go. Give it to the universe to decide what to do with it and keep creating. You are a creator, after all. If no one were to see your work, would you stop creating? Create for the love of it. Create for the connection, not the views.
Create because you wouldn't dream of any other way of living.
As Elizabeth Jane from Big Magic says: If you hate being creative, why do it? You always have a choice.
From one invisible human to the next, I applaud you to keep going. The world needs more creators, not less.
Lila Marie
Self portraits by Lila Marvell.