Hey there word nerds!
Today I am excited to interview Dan Blank, founder of WeGrowMedia and author of the new book Be The Gateway that just came out a few weeks ago.
Dan helps writers and creative professionals share their stories and grow their audience. He has worked with hundreds of individuals and some amazing organizations who support creative people, such as Random House, Hachette Book Group, Sesame Workshop, Workman Publishing, J. Walter Thompson, Abrams Books, Writers House, The Kenyon Review, Writer’s Digest, Library Journal, And more.
His work has been featured by Poets & Writers magazine, The National Endowment for the Arts, Professional Artist magazine, Compose Journal, and 99u.
To read the post titled “Be the Gateway” where Dan first talked about the gateway idea, click here.
In this episode Dan and I discuss:
- Sometimes setting limits helps you make something big out of something small. We talk about the ups and downs of writing this book and how Dan landed on this particular project.
- The idea of being the gateway (instead of focusing on specific metrics) is a radical shift from how many people think about platform. We discuss why creative people get so hung up on the numbers and how can they get past that and focus on what really matters.
- Be the Gateway touches on these three themes: Story, Creator, and Topics. We talk about these three components and how they contribute to creating that gateway for an audience
- Why the “visualization” myth so dangerous and why people buy into it. We also talk about what people can do instead.
Plus, Dan’s #1 tip for writers.
About the Author
Dan Blank is the founder of WeGrowMedia, where he helps writers and creative professionals share their stories and grow their audience.
He has worked with hundreds of individuals and amazing organizations who support creative people, such as Random House, Hachette Book Group, Sesame Workshop, Workman Publishing, J. Walter Thompson, Abrams Books, Writers House, The Kenyon Review, Writer’s Digest, Library Journal, and many others.
Dan’s work has been featured by Poets & Writers magazine, the National Endowment for the Arts, Professional Artist magazine, Compose Journal, and 99u.
Be the Gateway
Many people feel the drive to do creative work, but get overwhelmed by the process of connecting with an audience. They follow “best practices” in marketing that never seem to pan out, don’t produce results, and make them feel lost and oftentimes, frustrated. Be the Gateway offers a powerful way to have an impact.
If you want to share your voice and inspire people with your writing, art, craft, or creative idea, you have to be the gateway for them. Instead of throwing “products” out into the marketplace, you open them up to a new way of looking at the world, of knowing themselves, and connecting with others. You unlock new experiences for them — not just through what you create, but through the unique way in which you share it with the world.
Too often we think about the creative process as being separate from the marketing process. Instead, view them as the same. Replace the inclination to “promote” with the desire to share and engage. How and why you create is a story — and is the best asset you can use to truly engage people. Be the Gateway shows you how to use that gift with joy and confidence.
If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link, where if you choose to purchase DIY MFA makes a small commission at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!
Link to Episode 139
(Right-click to download.)
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Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!
