mishitales: (Default)
 *Dusts this thing off*

Sorry about the lapse in posts! 

Now that I'm about a month in on this Instagram comment spree, I can say what I like and don't like about the tactic. It works, I will say that much. The key is putting in time and effort, and since I ride the bus to work, I have the perfect opportunity to sit and comment! 

Pros
It works
You end up meeting great people within your niche
You learn more about the people you've been following

Cons
The algorithm is unforgiving if you happen to have a bad week and don't feel like commenting or interacting with people. You have to start from ground zero all over again, and to be frank, it's frustrating. I realize it's just lines of code doing what its been designed to do, but can't the developers realize that everyone is human and that we sometimes have 'off' weeks? Or better yet, go back to the old algorithm.

Update!

May. 26th, 2018 10:55 am
mishitales: (Default)
 As I stated in my last post, my Instagram activity dropped--it jumped off a cliff, and ran away!

I've been experimenting, but so far, nothing has worked to get my account back up to where it was in April. I've been trying switching up what I post, posting at different times, and liking everything I can in my niche tags. I recently started to up my comment game, so we'll see how that turns out.

It's just so frustrating because it was as if my account died over night! One day I was finally reaching a goal I had set for myself, and the next, the amount of likes dropped by 50%. It was just like that. I haven't been able to recuperate and get back up there. I have no idea what suddenly made my activity take a nose dive for the worse. I wasn't doing anything differently.

I know I shouldn't care, but when you spend hours on stuff, you want some sort of pat on the back! :) I also have my own set of personal goals that are hard to articulate on "paper." 

I wish I had a more positive post for everyone because I want this journal to look on the bright side and to be uplifting, but I've been working so hard to switch stuff up, experiment, and try new things in order to figure out why my activity dropped and to get back to where I was. 
mishitales: (Default)
 I've run into another slump.

Things were going great as far as my account growth, but now they have stalled are heading for reverse. Sometimes I wish this was like a video game where all that hard work you put into advancing to the next level ensures that you keep moving forward. 

I guess this is a great opportunity to test new things and to post about them, what works vs what doesn't! 

It's just frustrating sometimes. I try to keep a positive attitude, but it's hard, especially with all the effort I put into my work.

At any rate, I'll take experimenting into overdrive starting today and post the results! 

About my niche
It three major trends, art, dressing vintage, and antiques. The latter two can get very pricey. Seeing that I can't buy a new antique every week and don't have a dedicated photographer (I suck at selfies, ha ha!), I'll have to focus on art for now. 
mishitales: (Default)
Sometimes there are artist problems that only effect us teeny-tiny artists who struggle to breach the 10 likes mark. This series will bring those problems to light, and I'll post the things I do to try to combat the problem in hopes that I help another teen-tiny artist out there on the Interwebs!

Teeny-Tiny Artist Problem #1


Having to start from Ground Zero every time you come back from traveling. 

Every.Time.


My work travels several times every winter (right after the new year), and these are week long excursions that involve long shifts. You have ZERO time for the Internet except for looking at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram on your phone (and even then, I just skip Twitter most of the time). This means that I don't upload any art and only have time to like other posts when I get up in the morning--and I purposely get up early to go explore the city we're in (except that time we were stranded on an Island. Yes. You read that! It is not a lie! Ha ha!).

My coworkers think I'm a morning person, but it's just me wanting to explore a new place--to boldly go where Mishi hasn't gone before! So I also use this time to catch up on Instagram likes and to take aesthetic photos (while praying to the Internet gods that I don't lose a bunch of followers, because that happens too!). 

One day I hope to be to the point where losing a few followers when I travel won't matter and that my photos will keep my account alive, but until that day, I tend to get frustrated when I get back because I have to build everything up all over again. 

Before the last excursion, I had finally breached the norm of getting 30-40 likes per Instagram post. When I got back, I was down to 10 - 20. So you can see my frustration! 

Testing Something New Because I Refuse to Give up!

This time, I decided to try something new in order to quickly build my account back up. I stuck to a fandom and posted wip (work in progress) pictures of my sketches before posting the final drawing. I think this is working! I'm gaining momentum faster than I did the last time I traveled. I posted a wip last night, and that sketch is sitting at 30 likes now! 

Thanks for tuning in! As always, feel free to drop a line and say hello! 
mishitales: (Default)
#1 Trying to erase a tiny mark, but all you have is one of those giant "artist" erasers, so there's a 90% chance you're gonna erase a giant blob of hard work.

#2 Hands

#3 The Other Eye

#4 Drawing with pencil and smearing it as you start sketching on the other side of the page.

#5 Ruining an entire drawing because you wanted to be extra and write on it when you damn well know your handwriting sucks.

I may or may not have just ruined a drawing by bedazzling it with my wobbly handwriting... >.>

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