Why I Quit YouTube and Started a Blog Instead

I believe I am going to stop making YouTube videos. I know the timing is odd, considering that I just celebrated surpassing 100 subscribers. I am still thankful for the 110 or so people who have subscribed to my YouTube channel, but I have come to realize that YouTube is not really the best platform for what I want to do.

A big part of the problem for me is that YouTube is a consumer’s platform. This is becoming increasingly obvious as the largest channels on the platform are all corporate accounts. Long gone are the days of independent youtubers and humble vloggers ruling the platform. As it stands, I have approximately100 subscribers, but usually less than 10% watch my videos, and only 1 may comment. (And a lot of the comments are actually just spam). This is not exactly the community I was looking for. I started the channel back in January of 2020, wanting to engage with people since I didn’t have much of a social life at the time. And then that feeling grew once the quarantine hit. But the thing is, YouTube actually makes me feel more lonely if anything. Shouting into an empty room would be just as cathartic and a lot less effort. It’s not about numbers, per se; it’s about effort vs. enjoyment. It's about feeling connected to people. YouTube makes me feel like I'm trying to push a product, not ideas or conversations.

I did enjoy how YT challenged me to be creative week after week, but I have found that I feel more fulfilled sharing fanfic or fan art through other avenues. Those other platforms are way more interactive and therefore a lot more fun.

Also, with YouTube, my channel was never about one particular thing, so my videos didn’t appeal to a lot of my subscribers or the casual viewer. In order to build an audience, I felt like I needed to get people interested in me as a person. But then that kind of pushed me to share more of myself than I otherwise felt comfortable with. I prefer the anonymity of other more forum-like websites. I also like that when I publish a fanfic on Archive Of Our Own, for example, there is a built in audience of people excited for the stories I'm telling. I don't have to try to trick an algorithm into showing people my work. The tagging systems of AO3 or tumblr or reddit or whatever ensure that the people who want to see my stuff will actually be able to see it. And the users of those websites are much more likely to comment and give feedback. YouTube is not as sophisticated nor is it as communal.

So that being said, I’m still going to push myself to stay creative and use the internet for accountability. But I’m going to switch to blogging, which should be apparent by me making this post. It will likely be less effort after the initial set up and I think a blog will hopefully encourage more engagement. At the very least, it will be easier than researching, filming, and editing YouTube videos. However, I don’t think I will outright abandon my YT channel. If for some reason, I feel like something I’m doing warrants a video being made, then I will. But I have no plans for that going forward and I'm making no promises.

I still think if you have considered starting a YouTube channel, you should try it out. You may love it, you may not, but you don’t know until you try. And it will be a good challenge for you either way!

That's all for this inaugural post. Please check out my YouTube channel if you haven't already and leave me a comment. I will still read them and enjoy the input!