End of the pact - 07/08/26
It’s been a quick 12 weeks sharing music & updates on my creative process as part of a pact. The initial idea to run with this ‘tiny experiment’ was to connect directly with people who might like my music via Patreon, lower the stakes on what I share to include work in progress & sustain a rhythm of creating one thing per week.
Here’s what I’ve learned over the last through this experiment:
Patreon is a great platform for creators but it’s discovery features to help find and reach people who like new music aren’t quite there yet. This is different to other social media platforms where there is the algorithm for better (& worse) to target content to audiences based on their preferences.
Weekly sharing builds a rhythm but if you’ve got limited it can eat into the time you might otherwise use for other creative work. I’ve grappled with time spent making ‘something to share’ vs time I could use recording or songwriting so there’s a trade off in sustaining this way of creating.
A pact helps to quell some of the internal dialogue but there’s always a dance to be done with creative doubt and fear. This is a normal and healthy part of the process of making.
I need to lean further into showing up in person to connect with other creatives and start to build a stronger network in my local creative spaces.
I’m hugely grateful for everyone who has taken the time to listen to / read / watch any of my updates over the last few months - it means a lot.
For now, I plan to take a bit of time to think through next steps and reflect on where I go from here.
Stewart
