010: Recap (so far)

This retrospective has three sections:

• Review - the first ten episodes
• Preview - where we're heading next
• Discuss - lessons learned (so far)

Your ongoing feedback shapes this weekly experiment. Thanks!

Recap

001: “Hello World” - What is this project?

002: “Diverge, Converge” - Procrastination and creative resistance.

003: “Subway Comic” - A comic book, two ways.

004: “Battlestar Galactica” - A deep-dive into a great sci-fi TV series.

005: “Drawing + Writing” - Childhood reflections, Lynda Barry.

006: “Ten Movements” - Exercises to help you move / feel better.

007: “Climbing / Leaping” - Flying leaps, nervous breakdowns.

008: “Animation Sampler” - Clips from various eras.

009: “Thinking Fast + Slow” - The definitive owner’s manual for your brain.

Preview

Next, I plan to invest in three areas:

• Try out some collaboration posts
• Keep experimenting in genre + format
• Focus on email as primary “channel”

First: Collaborations.

Ideally, The Fire Jar grows beyond one voice. I hope to mix in other skillz and perspectives.

Even if you don’t identify as an capital-A “Artist”, I think basically everyone contains a special form of creativity and expression within.

Second: Keep experimenting with topics.

Things like: Behavioral economics, drawing, calisthenics, and a sci-fi TV series (among other things). Please keep sharing what you want more / less of. I'm envisioning a handbalancing tutorial, and an animated MBA series.

Third: Focus on email.

Email / RSS / html are great ways to connect with people globally using proven technologies that are not dependent on a single company.

If you never check your inbox, @TheFireJar is also (sort of) on Instagram.

Lessons Learned

Feedback I heard :

• The colors are muted, not ‘fire-y’ enough
• Some enjoy the "philosophical deep-dives", others find them too dense
• I should add time expectations in the email body ("4 min read"), so you know when / where to consume
• Mobile engagement is common, but desktop UX is better
• People want to respond to Qs in-line (swapping to email window is interruptive)

Great points ☝️
All valid.

Other learnings:

Have a process: Create every day. Edit often.

Writing: Cut unneeded words. Share. Iterate.

Grow slow: The “strategy” = emailing friends and relatives.

Today, 135 brave people get the episodes.

This is totally not "scalable".
And that's ok.  

Other recaps :

Retrospectives - The Fire Jar

~Quarterly reviews and reflections.

The Fire Jar