This is an sketch book picture that I digitally coloured using the simplest of techniques. I bloody loved doing this! I think I’m actually learning some digital skills now. Simple tuff for a simple guy!

Apologies to anybody who follows me on Instagram. I’ve not been as interactive and active as usual. The reason being, a few weeks ago I decided to take Instagram of my phone. I had already abandoned twitter years ago and last year dropped Facebook. I have started posting on you tube, more of an experiment because I like making the videos. I went down a rabbit hole of shorts, for some reason, I think as a practice for putting videos together using editing software.    I never got started with Tik Tok and tried a newsletter, Substack specifically, but never seemed to et traction. Also, I thought why am I starting a newsletter as the ones I have signed up to, I hardly ever read. I’m not even sure if people even read blogs these days, but according to the stats, it’s still a thing.

I like writing, so putting stuff up on here without having to bugger about with another app I perfect. Also, I like audio, which is why you’ll be able to listen to this as well (once recorded and edited, something I am new at, so please be patient)

So, back to the Instagram thing. I took it off my phone because I had realised, like many people, I was wasting an inordinate amount of time just flicking, doom scrolling through utter shite. It wasn’t even showing me the stuff I wanted to. I hardly ever came across any of the creators I followed. It would be weeks before a post of a creator turned up on mu feed and when I went back to check their feed, they had about 10 posts I had never seen.!

So, to stop me wasting my hours away, I finally made the decision to take it off my phone.  However, I didn’t want to abandon it all together. It’s the only social media app I have now (not including what’s app, if that is counted as one, I think,) and I did still want to see the work of other people. So, I put it on a cheap android tablet I use for reading comics on the Global Comics app. It’s a bit glitchy, but I don’t mind because it kind of puts me off spending to m much time on there. I can post from the tablet but import images from my computer as the camera is not great. I have been using the schedule service, so I don’t have to sit in front of it every night. It seems a bit of a longwinded way to post, but I don’t mind, I like the effort.   I also access my feed via the computer and can post if want.

So, the outcome of it not being on my phone has been great. I’m not wasting my hours scrolling through crap. The android tablet lives in the office, which is a converted garage next to my house, so don’t have it with me all the time. I’ve been drawing more, just for myself. I’ve certainly been reading more in the morning and evenings. I don’t keep it in my bedroom now. In fact, I look at my phone so little now I often forget where I have put the bloody thing, asking the kids to call it so I can locate it.

Instagram is a darned if you do, damned if you don’t monster. As I am sure we are all aware, the algorithm (I hate that word as much as “content” these days) changes all the time, and the numbers of eyeballs I’m getting have pretty much plummeted. However, having 6, 000 + people following my work, whether they get to see it or not, is pretty good. Each post gets an average of about 60 likes. That’s 60 people looking at my work 3 or 4 times a week. That’s pretty cool, I couldn’t have got my work seen by that nay people 20 yes ago. Instagram has helped people find me d do work for them. It helped me meet some very cool people from across the globe who I would never meet otherwise.

I don’t think I will ever delete the app. However, my relationship with it has certainly changed. All I want to do share my work, what to do and share and any skills I have that help other people. That’s part of the reason for the you tube vids I have planned. If a handful of people get something out of my studio drawings, that makes me very happy. I’m not going to chase algorithms and create content strategies. That’s a whole other skill for other people much better and, quite frankly, I can’t be arsed. I’d rather be drawing, or writing!

So, all in all, I’m glad I took it off my phone. I’m glad I have made it a bit more effort to post my work. Apologies if I haven’t liked your post, I will see it eventually. Take my advice, don’t be a slave to it. I was, for sure, and it didn’t do anything for me. It didn’t make me happy or sad, it just took away time and that’s one thing you never get back.

Have a great Christmas, if that’s your bag! I’ll see you all in the new year!

Dan(smonsters)