I’m Not a Content Creator, I’m a Writer with Stories to Tell

As a content creator, I’ve had a few posts go viral—on social media and the blog. One of them, about military kids, took off fast. The traffic, the comments, the attention—it felt incredible. But it didn’t last. I didn’t blow up. The silence returned just as quickly, and it was brutal. It turned out to be a fluke. I started questioning everything. That’s when I had to face the truth I’d been avoiding: content creator and writer are not the same. Going viral doesn’t make you a good writer. Writing does.

Table of Contents

• Content Creator vs Writer— No More Algorithms
• This Work Costs More Than It Pays
• What My Blog Takes from Me (and Us)
• Writing Feels Like Breathing
• I Love Photography, But Video Runs the Show
• I’m Going to Create a YouTube Channel
• I’d Rather Be Read Than Followed
• Like it. Pin it.

Content Creator vs Writer— No More Algorithms

I have an Instagram account. Sometimes I post on Bluesky. I post mostly on Flipboard and both personal and business Facebook pages. My personal Facebook gets a lot more traction than the business one, which is frustrating. It makes sense, though—the people on my personal Facebook actually like me. But if I’m honest, and that’s what I am trying to do, none of them do exceptionally well. I don’t enjoy crafting captions to please a platform that’s fickle and shallow. Some people have figured out what makes people stop scrolling. I am not one of them.

There was a time when all your friends actually saw what you posted. You didn’t have to trick the system or buy ads or wonder if using the word “link” would bury your reach. If you wrote something, the people who followed you saw it. Not anymore. That’s when I noticed the difference between content creation vs writing. Content creation wants quick reactions. Writing actually takes time.

Now, every platform runs on algorithms that work for their profit—not your voice. They make money from your clicks, your habits, and your personal data. Your stories aren’t shared because they’re meaningful. They’re shared because they’re marketable. And that’s never been the kind of writer I want to be.

Zadie Smith once said, “Social media is a kind of performance. But writing—real writing—is about taking off the mask.” That line stayed with me. Content creation asks us to put something on. Writing asks us to take something off.

This Work Costs More Than It Pays

This blog is where I spend the most time and the most money. Hosting. SEO tools. Themes. Backups. Newsletters. Updates. Every improvement comes at a cost, but I make the investment because it is the only medium I’ve made any money. Because I believe in it. It has been the place that is constant in all the travels and upheavals in my life for almost my entire adult life. And because I still want to be a writer more than I want to be a content creator.

I don’t have a full-time job outside this blog. Aside from the therapy it provides, I write because I want to build something lasting. But it’s also become a full-time commitment—with very few returns. The blog hasn’t taken me where I thought it would by now. I still don’t have the traffic, the income, or the visibility I imagined I would have by now. It feels heavy to admit that.

What My Blog Takes from Me (and Us)

My husband supports me—but not always quietly or unconditionally. He worries. He sees me stay up late, sitting for hours, writing and editing. I don’t move much anymore. I’ve gained a lot of weight, and he’s noticed. He’s mentioned it—more than once. Not to be unkind, but because it’s changed how I live and how I feel in my body.

He missed the time before I took pictures of everything we ate. When we traveled for the experience—not for the blog. When I wasn’t chasing angles, captions, or perfect lighting. Just traveling to travel, not for blog content. Sitting on the couch without the tap, tap, tapping of my keyboard. I’m just being in the same moment. He misses me being fully present, not always pulled away by a screen or an idea I’m chasing. And the truth is, he’s not wrong.

Some days I’ve sat staring at my screen, holding back tears because I gave hours, days—years—to this blog and get very little back. This blog takes a lot of my time, energy, and attention. Even when the results feel small—when the traffic is flat or no one replies—I still can’t seem to let it go because it gives me something I still need. It’s a place I can go, no matter where we are in the world. And it’s all mine.

Writing Feels Like Breathing

I’ve been writing in one form or another for most of my life. I do it to understand where I’ve been. I do it to hold onto something real when everything around me changes. The process is often slow and lonely. Sometimes painful. I have stopped before. But I keep coming back to it. Not because it makes me money. Not because people expect it. I come back because it’s where I hear my own voice.

Even when we travel, I don’t just relax. I take photos. And I film short clips. I make mental notes. I try to capture what others might want to know. It keeps me alert, but it also keeps me distracted. Sometimes I’m present. Other times, I’m curating. I don’t know how to stop seeing the world through that lens anymore. So, I guess it’s time to admit it is just a hobby or figure out how to make it work. I have come to the realization, I need more than the blog.

I Love Photography, But Video Runs the Show

Everyone I know, knows I love photography, and I’ve been told I take beautiful pictures. A single frame, when captured well, tells a complete story. Light, shadow, color—it pulls me in. Join Instagram– you’ll do well there. I did ok for a few years until I didn’t. Now my account is all but dead. I could post a booty pic, and only seven people would even see it.

My hubby has been encouraging me to start a YouTube channel. Video is king right now. All the platforms reward movement, sound, and speed. There’s not much space for stillness anymore. But that doesn’t help me. My strength is in the quiet frame—not the 7-second video.

A few years ago, someone asked me for recommendations in South Korea. I pointed her to my blog—one quick search would have pulled up everything she needed. She looked me in the face and said she didn’t have time to read it. She preferred I just text her the ideas I had already taken the time to put in one place. I didn’t have time for that.

I’m Going to Create a Youtube Channel

I avoided video for years—not because I didn’t know how, but because I didn’t want to see myself on screen. I’m a fat Black woman, not thin, blonde, or blue-eyed. And whether I said it out loud or not, I kept telling myself, “I’ll start when I lose weight.” When I looked more like someone people want to watch. It’s easier to write through insecurity than to film it. It’s easier to hide behind the words than to watch yourself say them out loud.

I notice every tick, every pause, every shift in my expression that doesn’t feel like me. My voice tightens. My face changes. And suddenly, I’m performing instead of just being present. It took me a while to admit it, but I’m not built for that kind of exposure. I’m not trying to become a social media influencer. I don’t want to chase views or wrap myself in a version of “relatable” just to stay visible. That’s when the content creator vs writer question became clear.

So I’m letting that pressure go. I’m not going to worry about being perfect. I’m not going to create overly edited videos. However, I’m also not going to shape myself around any social media feeds. I’ll show up as I am and hope a few people connect with my writing. Because I still have stories to tell. And now, I finally know how I want to tell them.

I’d Rather Be Read Than Followed

A like means nothing to me if you didn’t actually read what I wrote. A share doesn’t carry meaning if it’s done out of habit. Trust me—I want you to subscribe. But when someone messages me and says, “I read that,” or tells me something I wrote stuck with them—that’s what keeps me going.

Roxane Gay said it best: “I try not to think about audience when I write. I think about what’s true.” I come back to that every time I sit down to work. Truth over trend. Connection over clicks. That’s the line for me—the real divide in this content creator vs writer conversation. One is about reach. The other is about resonance.

I may never grow a huge following. I may never land a big brand deal. But I’ll keep writing, because it’s how I understand the world. This blog isn’t a side hustle. It’s a part of me—even if it doesn’t make me a star.

Like it. Pin it.

_{This post, I’m Not a Content Creator, I’m a Writer with Stories to Tell is sponsored and/or contains affiliate links, from which I earn a commission at no extra cost to the reader. I appreciate your support and know that all the views expressed are my own.}

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