For the months that I've been reading these dispatches, something has felt like a miss... so far, none of the work featured by these creators has inspired me to dig deeper, follow longer, spend more time. The only explanation I came up with was that maybe it's a generational thing, that this GenXer just doesn't get what the cool kids are up to and, oh well.
But today I read this (yes, long) piece about narrative collapse and the dots are starting to connect... Where, in the creator economy, is "narrative" being made? Are "narrative" and "storytelling" the same thing (if these are, indeed, the "next generation of storytellers")? So much of what I've seen by creators feels more personality-driven than narratively constructed, and maybe that's what audiences are into these days, or at least what's rewarded by algorithms.
Still processing, but would love to read your take if you can spare the time for a long read:
Hi Maida, thanks for taking the time to articulate this. I will take the time to read the piece, but here are some early thoughts based on what you're feeling.
I think what you’re describing is a real friction point, especially if you’re coming to this work expecting narrative in a more traditional sense. A lot of the creators we feature are not “narratively sound” in the way legacy storytelling has trained us to look for, and that can absolutely register as a gap rather than a feature.
What I’m seeing, though, is that many socially native creators are not starting with narrative as an end goal. They tend to begin with shorter, more personal expressions of point of view, pieces of daily life, work, or community that build familiarity over time. For some, that evolves into longer form or more conventional narrative structures. For others, it doesn’t, and that feels less like a limitation and more like a choice shaped by how they want to connect.
Part of what I’m trying to surface through OG is that these creators are often building the conditions for narrative before they ever attempt it. They’re developing trust, shared language, and community first. From there, they can choose to move into film, television, or other traditional formats if they want, but they don’t have to. In many cases, the storytelling is already happening, just not in a way that looks like plot and arc.
I don’t think narrative is breaking down so much as our definition of it is shifting. Stories about lives, jobs, routines, and subcultures are still stories, even when they don’t resolve cleanly or pull you forward in a familiar way. They tend to pull you closer instead, which can take longer to register if you’re used to a different mode.
I really appreciate this kind of dialogue because it sits right at the tension point between legacy narrative thinking and this newer media space. I also think there probably is a creator out there who will click for you and make that deeper engagement happen. If and when that does, I’d genuinely love to hear which one it is and why.
The repetition angle is underrated. Most people think you need constant novelty, but Ryan shows how depth beats breadth. I tried similar with some tech content last year and keeping the same format actually helped retention. What really works here is the waiting, those long stretches where nothing happensare what build trust with the audience, not just the big catch moments.
For the months that I've been reading these dispatches, something has felt like a miss... so far, none of the work featured by these creators has inspired me to dig deeper, follow longer, spend more time. The only explanation I came up with was that maybe it's a generational thing, that this GenXer just doesn't get what the cool kids are up to and, oh well.
But today I read this (yes, long) piece about narrative collapse and the dots are starting to connect... Where, in the creator economy, is "narrative" being made? Are "narrative" and "storytelling" the same thing (if these are, indeed, the "next generation of storytellers")? So much of what I've seen by creators feels more personality-driven than narratively constructed, and maybe that's what audiences are into these days, or at least what's rewarded by algorithms.
Still processing, but would love to read your take if you can spare the time for a long read:
https://www.metropolitanreview.org/p/stop-the-stream
Hi Maida, thanks for taking the time to articulate this. I will take the time to read the piece, but here are some early thoughts based on what you're feeling.
I think what you’re describing is a real friction point, especially if you’re coming to this work expecting narrative in a more traditional sense. A lot of the creators we feature are not “narratively sound” in the way legacy storytelling has trained us to look for, and that can absolutely register as a gap rather than a feature.
What I’m seeing, though, is that many socially native creators are not starting with narrative as an end goal. They tend to begin with shorter, more personal expressions of point of view, pieces of daily life, work, or community that build familiarity over time. For some, that evolves into longer form or more conventional narrative structures. For others, it doesn’t, and that feels less like a limitation and more like a choice shaped by how they want to connect.
Part of what I’m trying to surface through OG is that these creators are often building the conditions for narrative before they ever attempt it. They’re developing trust, shared language, and community first. From there, they can choose to move into film, television, or other traditional formats if they want, but they don’t have to. In many cases, the storytelling is already happening, just not in a way that looks like plot and arc.
I don’t think narrative is breaking down so much as our definition of it is shifting. Stories about lives, jobs, routines, and subcultures are still stories, even when they don’t resolve cleanly or pull you forward in a familiar way. They tend to pull you closer instead, which can take longer to register if you’re used to a different mode.
I really appreciate this kind of dialogue because it sits right at the tension point between legacy narrative thinking and this newer media space. I also think there probably is a creator out there who will click for you and make that deeper engagement happen. If and when that does, I’d genuinely love to hear which one it is and why.
The repetition angle is underrated. Most people think you need constant novelty, but Ryan shows how depth beats breadth. I tried similar with some tech content last year and keeping the same format actually helped retention. What really works here is the waiting, those long stretches where nothing happensare what build trust with the audience, not just the big catch moments.