Why the Best Asset a Writer Over 50 Has Isn't a TikTok Account--It's Their Life

 

If you are a writer over 50, it's unlikely you want to post TikTok videos to draw attention to your words. While plenty of us middle-aged folks enjoy digital entertainment, these marketing methods often resonate more with a younger audience. At 54, I love watching my adult children post their creative content on TikTok and Instagram, but personally, self-marketing on these platforms feels amiss. 

The generational age gap feels like a disconnect, which is frustrating since my best efforts are devoted to making genuine connections with people who resonate with me.

Recently, I gave Instagram a trial run by publishing a couple of posts to promote my debut poetry collection. While it was nice to receive a few likes and comments, I noticed these came from my adult daughters' friends- a 30-something audience. Yes, some will say I just need to give it more time, but the whole social media thing really doesn't fit my personality.

When I say 'social media,' I specifically refer to platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. They are nice to have, I suppose, but the typical engagement strategies and whatnot are a bit much for me, especially since outside of my art, I like my privacy.

Life experience over entertainment

At its core, social media is entertainment. But I don't want to dance my way through the crowd or post flashy clips or the latest 'fire' just for thirsty scrolling fingers. Don't get me wrong; I love this type of content in moderate doses. A little something here and there for a laugh or a little pick-me-up. Hey, why not? When it comes to my art, my writing, however, I much prefer reaching people on a soul-level, an occurrence warranting more than a three-second attention span.

At 54 with six years of online writing experience, I've come to realize that my greatest creative asset is life experience. A lived and learned background equals knowledge acquired through exposure and the wisdom necessary for contextual application. My real-life stories, my spiritual articles, and my poetry, which is my first love of writing, all reflect a deep thinker- a deep thinker who has evolved with time.

What a gift I have, and I aim to share my gift with others to inspire, to teach, to motivate, because in retrospect, there are many instances when I could have benefited from the same.

No, I don't fit into the modern generation of creators, the ones who dance their way across the screen.

No, I don't aspire to make jokes, rant about conspiracy theories, politics, or jump on the bandwagon of trendsetting social media influencers.

No, my goals don't entail blowing up on Facebook, TikTok, or Instagram with the comments section sparking highly detailed support, debates, haters, and repostings moving at lightning speed.

I simply want to make a mark, sharing my genuine, authentic self, reaching readers who value my words, my insight, and my perspective, without all the hype of modern-day social media.

Finding my tribe, my way

If you are a middle-aged writer and find yourself nodding along, know that you don't have to change who you are to fit in with modern-day creativity. I am not anti-media platforms; the typical ones simply don't work for me. And that's okay. I'm not willing to compromise my integrity, and neither should you. Besides, life teaches us that there's often more than one way to approach any given topic, circumstance, issue, etc., and with that being said, it's exactly what I've chosen to do.

I won't force my quiet art into noisy spaces, and you don't have to either.

Furthermore, there's a rapidly growing audience of mature readers who actively seek depth, nuance, and soul-level content.

Over 50 doesn't equate to a digital hurdle; it's actually superhero status.

How do we claim our superhero self?

When we stop chasing algorithms and focus on building a legacy.

In part two of this series, "The Over 50 Writer's Guide to Authentic Self-Marketing," I will share easy, stress-free marketing tools and strategies, ones I implement, for creators over 50.

No dancing required either.