One of the very first pieces of writerly advice I remember reading after my first publishing credit was to jump onto ALL OF THE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS.
A few years later and I think it’s very safe to say that advice is bullshit.
I’ve quit Facebook. Deactivated the account since Facebook suspiciously won’t allow me to delete the damn account (try it; the site hangs and you never go to the next page – how quaint). So I deleted the app, removed my bookmarks, and deactivated. It’s better for my long term mental health and Twitter, while rife with fucking nazis, lets me mute and block at my discretion so I have a more properly curated feed.
To the mental health point. I’ve found Facebook became a strange place for me. I couldn’t be myself for fear of alienating complete strangers but I also was my most domestic self (pics of family, sharing vacation plans, etc). Then there was inability to be political without labeling myself as being “negative” or being accosted by my more conservative-minded family members (Eric, I know you probably don’t read these, but if you do, rest assured, you do not count in that group).
So I quit something worth quitting. It feels a little like when I quit smoking. Every so often, I get the urge to check my phone and get that little dopamine hit, but there’s still Twitter and honestly, I feel a lot better leaving all that bullshit behind.
I’m making this sound like a bigger deal than it really is, but I’m beginning to realize that as a writer, I’d rather bring myself to a place where I engage a little less personally, if that makes sense. I suppose I want to be myself but not at a level that demands quite the amount of devotion maintaining multiple online personas seems to require. On Twitter I can be political, a little perverse, and frankly, a little more obnoxious. I like that version of me, and honestly, I want to stop caring if anyone else does care.
So if you want to stay on top of whatever I’m up to, @GoshDarnMyLife is where to do that. I’m off Instagram too since that’s an FB endeavor. Who knows, maybe I’ll do Snapchat (I will probably not do Snapchat).
Be easy,
Angel
Angel Luis Colón 
6 responses to “Platform”
Interesting that you chose Twitter over Facebook.
Social media is weird.
I prefer the UI and frankly, I can avoid all the right people on Twitter.
Facebook is definitely a weird minefield. Right now I use it most so that family know what’s going on with us and because it’s a great way of connecting with locals in Bangkok. Otherwise, it’s hard to trust what you see, people are constantly reintroduced to you in ways that are unsettling at best and it’s easy to feel like you’re being used as a cog in their wheel the way their algorithm serves content or makes the newsfeeds of friends available to you. You’re missing nothing.
EXACTLY. Besides, Jeanette’s on there and will always show me adorable pics of the girls. Hope all’s well overseas!
I’ll miss you over on FB, but I totally understand. I was always impressed by all the material you posted as well as your prolific writing. I don’t post much on FB (or social media in general) because I always overthink what I should write, the impact, etc. It sucks time and energy away. Hope to see you soon.
Who knows. I only deactivated, so the door’s always open. Appreciate the kind words. Hope all’s well!