“So are faced with a terrific, inspiring challenge: finding ways to use technology to build connection and community even as the old world disintegrates around us.”

This is a line from an article on Salon about the music industry. The link is here: http://goo.gl/HLxDDi. I found this line particularly compelling because it can be applied to different industries. Certainly, the book and journalism industries need to use technology to connect to readers. There are many online magazines and presses. However, some don’t pay writers, or if a publication does, it is a pretty miniscule fee. Contests offering a sizable monetary reward also often require the writer pay to enter the contest.

I started submitting my writing recently, and I ran into these issues. It is tough to send out something you have spent hours rewriting and revising and to know best case scenario, you could be published, but receive no money. Then again, I am just starting out. All writers/musicians/artists need to start somewhere. And still. Writing a story is work. Painting a picture is work. Composing a song is work.

This week, I struggled with writer’s block. I was stuck on a story and then started another. I ended up deleting the second story. There is no compensation for these failed attempts. So when I finally deem a story worthy of being passed in front of an editor’s eyes, I have to say I do feel I should be compensated.

The burden falls not only on those that pay or don’t pay us for our art, but also on the artists. As creators, we need to be out there building and nurturing these new connections. I am not a particularly good networker, but I am trying to be a better online networker. I am here! Writing this blog! And I also tweet, pin, Instagram, and Facebook. I appreciate writers and musicians engaging online, especially when they actively engage with their fans. It shows they appreciate their fans’ support. By nurturing these relationships, they have built communities which have implications beyond the Twitterverse. I became an even greater admirer of Roxane Gay through this type of online engagement. I will be buying her new and subsequent books partly because of this interaction.

The proliferation of online magazines and presses is astonishing. The variety of places you can stream music is growing every day. We as artists have to be brave enough to find new ways to engage, support each other, and to keep creating. We as a people must remember all the writers, editors, photographers, artists, drummers, singers, guitar players, etc. creating these beautiful sounds, images, and words. Though they love doing it, it takes time and energy to create art. We need to seek out new ways to support artists and make sure they have the means to continue creating. So maybe showing support means buying a subscription to your favorite literary magazine, or maybe it is contributing some money to “artist-focused crowd-funding start-up Patreon.” The point is art matters, and if it matters to you, do something about it.