After taking a month-long break from all social media, I've returned with a fresher look at the future. Going forward, all of my content in this newsletter will focus on my authorial journey in one dimension or another. To facilitate that content direction, I've made a few minor tweaks in how I will approach content creation.
First among the list is a change of name. While I'm keeping the URL of the newsletter the same, the newsletter itself is taking on the name of Author Allen Taylor. That matches my author website and more accurately reflects the type of content I plan to publish, and have been publishing for two years.
The newsletter is organized into 4 distinct communities:
Web3 Publishing - Formerly Web3 Writings, this community focuses on emerging Web3 publishing tools, including Web3 social media. Original articles will publish on Wednesdays. I am done with news curation.
Travelogue - Each Tuesday, picking up next week, I will share a snippet from Theresa's and my travels, which we memorialize on our YouTube channel.
The Crux - The Crux will continue to publish on Thursdays and consists of insights on living as a Christian in this century.
Speculative Fiction - This community will include content, both fiction and nonfiction, centered on the speculative fiction genre.
Additionally, the general content channel is for content that isn't specific to any one topic or that will be of interest to members of all of the above communities.
If you're an email subscriber, you'll see a link at the bottom of your emails labeled "Manage preferences". If you click that link, you'll be able to choose which of the above communities you want to subscribe to and you'll receive only the content I send out to those communities to which you are subscribed. I assume there is something similar for wallet subscribers.
While I admire content creators like Greg Younger and Greg Fishbone for their ability to create visually appealing literary NFTs, I've found that just isn't for me. For that reason, I'm not abandoning NFTs altogether, but I will be creating fewer literary NFTs than before and refocus my energy on what I do best, which is crafting insightful, informative, and entertaining long-form content along with some fiction and poetry. Regarding graphic content, I've always approached it as an enhancement to the textual content rather than as the primary component of the content as is the case with well-crafted literary NFTs.
It's important to point out that I do not look down on those who have chosen the NFT path. On the contrary, I respect them. But that isn't me, and I'm not going to pretend that it is.
Whether literary NFTs are the future of Web3 content is a different matter. I'm not interested in a rewards vs. NFTs or Hive vs. Mirror debate because I believe there is room for both types of content. NFTs are about utility more than monetization, though the monetization of NFTs has a powerful upside. Rewards, such as those earned on Hive, on the other hand, are distinctly about monetization. Having been a content creator for well over 30 years, and having been a content creator in a variety of media from poetry to journalism, it's always been about monetizing and audience reach/engagement for me. Therefore, I'll be refocusing my energies toward Hive and away from other Web3 social platforms as I believe Hive is still the best platform with its optimal mix of monetization options, censorship-resistance, and decentralization. If you wish to connect with me on Hive, you can find me here.
Finally, after playing around with some gated options, I've decided to open my Discord channel to the public. For the daring and brave, you can now become an active member of The Taylor Cult. Drinking Kool-Aid is not allowed!
Thanks for allowing me to take a break, and thanks for being a reader. I'm looking forward to bringing you more great content soon.
Author Allen Taylor
P.S. For readers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, I'll be signing books at Kroger in Mesquite, located at 1919 Faithon P Lucas Sr Blvd, on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tell your friends and family to come out and meet the author.
