avatarJ & J (Jessica & Joshua J. Lyon, BSQP, ACNP)

Summary

The author emphasizes the importance of authentic vulnerability in writing and life, despite its lack of viral potential, and cautions against the inauthenticity of articles that exploit personal stories for monetary gain.

Abstract

The article discusses the discrepancy between genuine vulnerability in writing and the sensationalized stories that often achieve viral success. The author, who has experience in mental health and marketing, points out that many viral stories are exaggerated or embellished, often originating from privileged backgrounds and labeled as "American privilege." In contrast, the author shares their own experience with complete memory loss abroad, which, despite its authenticity and the sharing of personal vulnerability, did not attract widespread attention. The author criticizes the trend of writing solely for financial gain, particularly on platforms like Medium, where sensationalized titles overshadow the value of personal experiences. Instead, the author advocates for writing as a form of expression and information sharing without the intent to sell or capitalize on one's stories. The unpredictability of viral success is acknowledged, with the author noting that it often depends on initial exposure within the first 24 hours rather than the quality of the content.

Opinions

  • The author believes that many viral articles are not authentic representations of vulnerability but rather exaggerated narratives.
  • There is a critique of individuals who capitalize on personal stories for monetary gain, suggesting that this devalues the integrity of writing.
  • The concept of "American privilege" is introduced to describe the tendency to sensationalize relatively minor issues, contrasting with genuine hardships faced globally.
  • The author asserts that one's personal experiences and stories are worth more than the compensation typically offered by content platforms.
  • There is a call to avoid engaging with clickbait and poor writing advice, which perpetuates the cycle of inauthentic content.
  • The author emphasizes the importance of writing for the sake of expression and sharing knowledge, rather than for profit.
  • The unpredictable nature of viral content is highlighted, with the author suggesting that luck and social sharing play significant roles in an article's success.
  • The author encourages readers to research the backgrounds of those who offer writing advice or claim expertise, to ensure credibility

I Agree with being Vulnerable in Writing & in Life; that Doesn’t Help you go Viral, Though

I’ll explain this in 2 minutes

Photo by cottonbro from Pexels

I won’t call out actual articles, but I’ll make an analogy for what they said. At the same time, as someone who works in mental health I understand to not compare situations with other people— and also someone who has marketing experience, I know of many situations where someone lied about their experience and it did not really impact them.

A lot of stories originate from elementary through high school. The writer talks about being bullied — but with some investigating, I find that they had great grades, were in sports, both parents present in their lives, and basically the life everyone wants for their kids. Result: their bully trauma would actually be defined as “normal” on clinical documents.

That is what we call “American privilege” to be able to stub your toe and go see the doctor for it. Yes, you stubbed your toe, but that is general life.

I have been in several different countries and seen literal babies in diapers crying on the side of dirt-city streets, next to their older sibling sitting next to them, with both parents having died from an earthquake. The next day seeing the baby laying down and the sibling still sitting there, starving as well. Our brains are able to adjust to situations as defined by the American Psychological Association.

In scenario 1, a recent graduate and licensed counselor will work on building normal self-esteem. In scenario 2, a psychologist will work on severe trauma.

In my own “vulnerability”, with experienced literal 100% memory loss while in a foreign country (seen below).

8 reads. Did not go viral. But I was vulnerable…

Then Why

In retrospect, we (the people who click on posts), are the ones that make sh*t articles about “how to go viral”, go viral. Perpetuating the articles just like it. You know how to kill something, don’t water it. You know how to kill wrong writing advice, don’t click on the clickbait.

You should be vulnerable, yes. You should have self-esteem the American Psychological Association clinically assess as “normal”, yes. But, don’t write it for money. Don’t write your story for $30. It’s worth more than that. It’s worth more than one order of Uber Eats.

Go ahead and read through the article titles from people giving writing advice. They are always selling something. Many of their stories are duplicates, just with different titles. They are duping you.

I don’t sell things. Sure, I have a nonprofit, but it’s for military life assistance. Sure, I have an LLC, but I’ve never advertised it and will never do that. I just like to write. A LOT! I like to give out free information that came from my experiences, certifications, ingenious intuition, and education. The reason people sell basic information is that they don’t have actual skills. They have to sell “secrets” for this and that.

Matthew McConaughey chose to write a book at the pinnacle of his acting career. Do I think things just feel into that order? Ha-ha!!! No, not at all. He knew his book would go viral because his name’s big. That was calculated.

For the rest of us, we are subject to luck or nice friends and family who help promote our stuff by merely sharing our content. My top 2 read stories were not stories that I wanted to go widespread or planned to do so.

It was about who saw it in the first 24 hours in the publication, to make Medium continue to show it. That, you cannot calculate.

Lastly

Remember to do your research. There is a difference between Matthew McConaughey, where his pictures and his life ends up being talked about by the masses, with that person who wants to “sell” you “your better life” who 1) has no website or ever ran a business, 2) has no thorough online or stage presence, 3) has that 1 nice photo they use on every platform, and 4) you can’t find anything about what they actually do or their background (but, they say they had a good career, but can’t show me things to prove it). This person is who is going viral on Medium with clickbait titles.

Writing
Writing Tips
Illumination
Life
Viral
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