You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)

For my 50th birthday I bought myself three books (as ebooks). One was Felicia Day's new memoir, You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost).

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Felicia has an interesting story to tell. She was homeschooled in possibly the oddest way possible. She entered college as a young teenager. She struggled as an actress, got addicted to online gaming, then used those troubles to create the web series The Guild. I first saw Felicia in the last season of Buffy, became interested in her work just as the Guild was picking up, and have enjoyed her creative efforts ever since.

All that would make for an interesting read, but what resonated with me what her description of her struggles with self-esteem and anxiety. Any creative work can put you in a bad headspace from time to time. The creative life is one of lots of rejection and precious few bouts of acceptance, from yourself or from others. It's reassuring to learn when other artists have difficulties that are similar to yours in some way. It's helpful to hear how they cope so that you'll have some idea how to when the voices of discouragement start sounding in your brain once again.

Felicia is also an example of how good it can be for an artist to take charge of their art. She just didn't star in The Guild; she wrote it and got it made. I hope reading her story kicks me in the butt every now and again.

I can't recommend Felicia's book highly enough. If you haven't got it, and you're any kind of artist and a geeky person, buy it!