There is a sense that a “good” intro post should be upbeat and positive, not vaguely annoyed. Well, I’m sick of being good. So welcome, this space is for you if you are tired of masking, and think it’s cool to be rough around the edges. This newsletter is called Mindy & Ego Cat after all, not Mindy & Ego Cat who is pretending to not exist for maximum likability.
I have been feeling repulsed by the internet lately. I am sensitive to inauthenticity and seeing AI slop everywhere—from Instagram Reels to Threads to even my email inbox—frankly, makes me feel a bit ill. It’s not that I am opposed to AI. I plan to use AI extensively to create animated content. I also chat with GPT-4o daily to untangle thoughts. The issue is with my standards. AI-generated content that lacks sufficient human input…is simply mid. It is by definition derivative, as opposed to inspired. I felt like bursting into tears this morning when I read a human-written Substack article. It was dense in substance, as opposed to AI-generated texts that tend to be hollow and repetitive. It felt like diving into an aromatic bowl of authentic pho after a week of living on instant pho (true story).
Thanks to AI, the internet is being overrun with low-quality content. They don’t appear that bad at first glance. Sometimes they appear to be higher quality compared to deep-fried memes that teenage shitposters upload (true art, btw). Perhaps the better term is to call them soulless. They feel like mass-produced plastic goods. That feeling when you’re trying to swim at a beach and you see plastic bags floating everywhere, that’s the feeling that I have been getting whenever I log onto the web these days. I wonder if any of you can relate.
I think that’s why I felt called to create this newsletter. I know my art is powerful. Many people have shared with me that my Ego Cat comics snapped them out of an egoic loop and changed the course of their lives. I feel like I found my ikigai. I am excited to build a life around this. But—back in the good old days, I could post a comic and reach tens of thousands of people. It was amazing. These days, I have to compete with AI and content that is formulaically optimized to affect people like a drug on social media. I am not bitter (ok maybe a tiny bit). I am adjusting to a new reality. What I really want is to reach people who care about my work. I don’t care if I only have five people reading this to start. I want a deeper and unobstructed relationship with my audience.
If you’re here, it’s because you feel a connection to me and my character Ego Cat. I am excited for you to meet Chakra Kittens too. Trying to figure out how to introduce Chakra Kittens to my existing audience has been a headache. I have decided to just trickle them out somehow. The pressure is building and I need to vent, even if it’s through pricking little holes.
I feel like I am retreating in a way. Perhaps it’s a regression? Whatever it is, it feels right for me at the moment. I think other content creators are feeling the pull to do the same thing, to pull back and build small hives with people who resonate in the same frequency—aka who really get each other—as opposed to being out in the trash filled open ocean, subjecting ourselves to misunderstandings, projections, and hate. It’s exhausting. It feels good to build my little reef where I can share my cosmic downloads with people that I like. Thank you for being here!