Where I get inspiration: YouTube Edition
A guest post by Laura Bibby.
You’re reading Soft Hobbies, a weekly newsletter for creatives in all mediums, with a special focus on writers. I’m Auzin, a Seattle-based writer in the fiction, poetry, and tech spheres. Feel free to visit my author website or check out my socials.
Greetings to the 678 softies who subscribe to this newsletter! Thank you for being here.
Today’s post was written by my friend Laura! Please enjoy :)
Where I get inspiration from: YouTube edition
Hi everyone! I’m Laura (she/her), a queer writer currently based in Meanjin/Brisbane, Australia. I started my Substack BabyGamer earlier this year as a way to organise the coagulated thoughts I get on video games, writing, and often both at the same time. I met Auzin in 2020 when we were both Poetry Editors for the now (sadly) defunct Hecate Magazine and her wonderful Soft Hobbies newsletter very much inspired me to start my own. A huge thank you to her and her unsuspecting subscribers for letting me hijack her blog for a bit!
I’ve never considered myself to be a YouTube person. I always thought I was someone who dipped in occasionally, mostly to watch music videos and yoga classes, yet somehow, over time, I’ve acquired a couple of favourite channels that I watch regularly and would go as far to say that they inspire me in some way. Whether that’s as a gamer or a writer, or just in life. It’s a saturated industry with plenty of channels vying for your attention, demanding that you “click the subscribe button” every chance they get. But here are a couple of my favourite “YouTubers” that have inspired, informed and entertained me in some way.
Slice of life & Books
Leora’s Aileen’s YouTube channel literally saved me. I know that sounds a little dramatic, but it’s true! Be forewarned, this next bit details symptoms of severe burnout…
It was the height of the pandemic. I was working full time at my healthcare day job. I had adjusted my study load from part time to full time so I could graduate sooner. Everything in my head had this overwhelming sense of urgency.
My flight-or-fight switch flipped on and stayed on for the ensuing 6 months, at least. I was perpetually shaky. The intrusive thoughts were constant. My hair started to fall out and I felt utterly alone. Not to mention I had no idea when I would see my family again (they’re all overseas).
And I just broke.
I’m grateful to have survived what was honestly one of the worst of times for just about everyone, and Leora unknowingly had a hand in my ongoing recovery—along with therapy and slowing the f*ck down!
During the burnout, I struggled to write or do anything remotely creative, but I found myself not only being okay with watching other people do it, but finding it inspiring. Leora’s slice of life vlogs filmed in and around her adorable home in Rotterdam were a calming balm to my constantly spiraling brain. I was, and still am, a dedicated viewer of her book reviews, her writing vlogs, and have even been inspired to get back into journaling thanks to her journaling videos and gorgeous online shop where she sells stickers, bookmarks and prints she illustrated herself. I’m eternally grateful for Leora’s wholesome, inspiring content.
Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@leoraaileen
Favourite video:
Gaming
There are literally thousands of YouTube channels about gaming, but Mortismal Gaming is pretty much the only one I trust when it comes to informative, honest reviews without the BS.
When I was thinking about playing The Witcher: Enhanced Edition for the first time, I headed straight to Mortym’s channel to see what he had to say about it. Sure enough, his insightful, balanced review of the classic gave me enough to go on, and he didn’t make a single comment about how “Geralt looks like sh*t,” like pretty much every other video I’d seen on the subject.
I honestly don’t know how he does what he does. If you’re not familiar with him, Mortym 100% completes games in a very short space of time, often having done around 3 separate playthroughs before the game is even released (this happened with Dragon Age: The Veilguard.) His videos are concise, well written, and are often the reason I'll pick a game up, most recently with the Oblivion Remaster. I just knew he’d have some interesting videos about the Elder Scrolls series and yep, his 1-hour video about the original was enough for me to dust off the old PS3 and jump on in. I probably would’ve anyway, but at least I was armed with helpful tips that don’t include “get gud.”
The world of gaming is drenched in gatekeeping, so it’s great to have found a gaming YouTuber who is inclusive, with interesting, helpful videos on the subject. If only I could collect my own thoughts in my articles for BabyGamer in the same way! 😅
(Ed note: Laura is modest. Her post on Dr. Franken is awesome).
Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MortismalGaming
Favourite video:
Writing
I’ve always been interested in writing. I was one of those kids who kept journals and wrote stories and poems from a young age, and while high school doused the flames of my passion for writing so much that I didn’t write anything for a long, long time, my return to it in adulthood is something I deeply cherish and protect with everything I have.
Early on, I consumed a lot of writing advice. I feel like I’ve pretty much heard it all: from the intricacies of developing your craft, right down to the agony of finding and filling in plot holes. I also have a degree in Creative Writing which helped my critical thinking skills, but not my grammar (which will always be bad and I’ve made peace with that!). These days, I don’t tend to watch many writing vlogs, but I do enjoy interviews and talks with my favourite established authors, in particular V.E. Schwab’s YouTube/podcast series No Write Way.
I’m a big fan of V.E. Schwab’s body of work, especially her Shades of Magic series. She not only has an incredible way with words (her newsletters are masterpieces all on their own,) but she’s also a charming and generous interviewer. I’m inherently nosy and love hearing about how my favourite authors tackle their projects. How they set things up, what their workspace is like, what inspires them. That’s magic to me, and V.E. draws this kind of information out of her fellow authors by setting up a relaxed atmosphere that makes you feel like you’re cosied up in the lounge with them.
I consider my gaming and writing blog BabyGamer to be a side project (or the ultimate procrastination project 😅) while I gather more inspiration for the other things I’m working on. Right now, I’m writing fantasy novels. Yet I find hearing about what my favourite authors do when they’re not writing can be more inspiring than any craft blog post.
Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@veschwab_onwriting
Favourite video:
It's been a pleasure writing this for Auzin. I'd love to hear about your favourite YouTubers, especially when looking for inspiration. If you're interested in an elder millennial's musings on writing, video games, plus a lot of unrelated tangents about trying to publish my novel, you're welcome over on my blog BabyGamer any time!
Auzin here — thanks Laura for such an awesome post! I often get inspired by YouTubers too. I feel like you’re either a podcast person or a YouTube person, and I definitely fall into the latter camp. Here’s a few of my favorite channels for writing inspiration:
I do my most focused writing with an Autumn Cozy video on in the background.
Vespertiliu’s journey through The Artist’s Way is closest I’ve ever come to doing it myself. She might honestly convince me to start!
Esmie is an author in the UK who gives an honest, hardworking perspective on being a working writer.
Let me know about your faves and thanks for reading :)
Softly yours,
Auzin
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