You can't take the internet out of the girl
Why I went internet AWOL and how Troy Bolton and I are more alike than you would think
Hello, valued reader *blows dust off keyboard*
If you’re getting this email in your inbox, you’re either:
a) really happy to hear from me
b) immediately unsubscribing, calling Interpol, wondering who this crazy human is, and asking chat “how to delete the internet”
Hello to all of you in column “a”, and a big thank you to those of you in column “b” who decided to stick around for the ride. How are you? Are you okay? Did you have dinner yet? Go do that!
Reintroducing my internet persona
I’m Johanna! I’m a designer, artist and fragile old lady trapped inside a sprightly young woman’s body. I like to write stuff and draw little pictures. It’s all very silly and fulfilling for me personally and spiritually.
I have been posting stuff on the internet since 2013 and have pivoted approximately 32,000 times since then. For the most part, it has been a one-sided operation. I share things and then crickets chirp. Then the crickets stop chirping to figure out why it’s so quiet.
A small handful of wonderful people have supported me along the way (and I am forever grateful for your encouragement and know that if you’re reading this, you’re probably one of them).
But at a certain point, the lack of followers, subscribers and readers started to make me wonder what I was doing and why.
I felt embarrassed and like a failure. And actually, I still feel like that sometimes when I haven’t slept properly or when I drink too much coffee.
Figuring out how to internet again
While I haven’t been sharing things online, I have slowly been doodling, journaling, and making a lot of nonsense away from an audience. I was also working as a copywriter for Korean 대기업 companies and learned… internet stuff and improved my Korean business emailing skills (a very niche fascination of mine).
I realised that for me, making stuff is an inevitability. It’s what I love. It’s a compulsion. It’s what basketball/amateur musical theatre is for Troy Bolton. But unlike Troy, whether or not there is an audience to see me soaring-flying- breaking-free is not super important.
So I’m figuring it out again and making sure that I show up in a way that is ethical, fun, quirky and intentional. Which is really hard when everything on the internet makes me want to roll up into a ball and weep.
I’ve been creeping back into making content, filming awkward videos, doodling my wandering thoughts, and turning my 3 AM notes app notes into ~ c o n t e n t ~
I would love for you to check out some of the things I’ve been working on, share them with your neighbour, follow my accounts, or just sort of smile at your screen thinking “you got a lot of stuff, kid” (that’s a famous quote from the Disney Pixar film Cars, which I have watched 17 times this week).
What I’m doing and where it’s going down:
Picnic Journal Website - A place on the internet where I post words, illustrations, essays, and gentle cries for help. I designed and illustrated and wrote everything myself, and I want it to feel like you’re a small piece of washi tape trapped inside my bullet journal, but, like, not in a creepy way. I’ll be sharing new content from Picnic Journal on my Substack!
YouTube - Watch this space
Instagram - Sharing snippets of daily life in my stories and my art on my feed. Shorts and reels make me dizzy. I’m a millenial/gen Z cusper, so I prefer my videos in a 16:9 format tbh.
Content from me 2 u
Here are some of my favourite journal entries from my new website. Check them out, give me some feedback, munch on some fresh celery sticks, and I’ll see you out there! Have a great day and thank you for your support!