Daily Inspiration: Chuck Wendig on Branding
"...a brand is what you put on a cow to represent ownership. A brand is about keeping the herd in a fence. A brand is artifice: a thing levied by a corporate entity onto a product so that we all think a specific thing and get a particular feeling about that product even if that is a lie. A brand burns you. A brand marks you. It is a vulnerability because if you brand yourself one way and then find that doesn’t work or need to re-brand, you’re going to have a hard time. Many authors have found themselves trapped by their own brands. Who wants to read a book by a brand? Who wants to interface with a carefully-orchestrated persona? Be a person. Find your voice. Let your voice be the thing that identifies you. Resist branding. Resist other corporate, businessy labels. Again: be the best version of yourself."
In a blog post titled “Stupid Answers to Common Writing Questions,” writer Chuck Wendig broke down his thoughts on the concept of an artist branding himself. While I do think it’s important for an artist to discover a voice and style, I agree with Wendig when he says, “if you brand yourself one way and then find that doesn’t work or need to re-brand, you’re going to have a hard time.”
The best policy is to be authentic, honest, and focused. It’s better to worry about actually creating, completing, and distributing work than to worry about your personal brand. Your brand is artist, and artist can mean so many things. If you make sure you’re the artist who makes and finishes things, you’ll be miles ahead of many others.
Be a creative person who creates. That’s the best brand you can be.
"Regret" by FalcaoLucas
