Is it Time to Shake Up My Instagram Strategy?

Or should I just give up on the platform?

Instagram and its usefulness depends, largely, on who you are as a creative and how you use it. This is written from the perspective of a writer who used Instagram to initially grow a platform but actually used it to explore her creativity and, in the process, built up an audience.

Just what is going on with Instagram? I’ve been on the platform for a number of years. Almost a decade in fact. I started my account back in 2013/2014 after being rejected by publishers as a food writer (of sorts). Back then I was writing about food, specifically cakes, in modern women’s fiction. I had a regular column on a literary website and was approached by a literary agent to put together a baking recipe book proposal for publishers.

I was incredibly proud of this proposal but, unfortunately, it had no takers. It garnered positive feedback but I was primarily rejected because I didn’t have a television presence (this was ten years ago when social media was very young). The thought of going on TV made me balk so I opted for a social media platform instead. Being a visual person I plumped for Instagram.

My intentions were simple. To find an audience and to have publishers running back to me, admitting, rather sheepishly, how wrong they were.