Going Viral Sucks

As a person not seeking internet fame, it’s an unpleasant experience every time

Maybe somebody enjoys the experience of going viral, but not me. I originally used social media as a time-waster, then as a tool for connection during the exhausting and chaotic years of having three babies in four years, then as a method of building community, and finally as an income supplementation.

To be clear: my goal, my plan, is not to support myself full-time by creating internet content. It’s too volatile, the audiences too fickle. I am never quitting my day job; but the little extra is nice, along with the community that I’ve found and built over the many years.

The first time I went viral was completely unexpected, and since it’s never been my goal, it always comes as a bit of a surprise when something reaches a much larger-than-expected audience.

For reference, because everyone will have a slightly different definition, I am a very regular not-clout-seeking person who makes content helping writers be better writers (and occasionally writes about personal experiences as an emotional release). I consider something viral if it’s got more than ten million eyeballs on it; it’s popped off somewhere around a half-million.

Unfortunately, that wide gulf between popping off and going viral is some of the most uncomfortable territory to be in.