Elan Gale knows a thing or two about making an impression on social media.
His Instagram accounts – Tinder Nightmares, Texts From Your Ex, Your Shitty Family, Unspirational and We Should Break Up – have gained millions of followers thanks to their hilarious and awkward nature.
Not only a master of digital mediums, Elan has transcribed his social media success into several best-selling books as well.
But why does Elan describe himself as insecure despite his success? How much time per day does he spend on social media? What is the most cringe-worthy Tinder Nightmare of all time?
And, perhaps most importantly, will Elan ever consider joining Steemit?
A huge thanks to Elan for taking time out of his incredibly busy schedule to answer these questions and many more in this exclusive Steemit interview.
20 questions with Elan Gale
1 - How would you describe yourself in one sentence?
Elan - I'm a tremendously strange person who can't figure out what he wants to be when he grows up.
2 - What inspired you to create the Tinder Nightmares Instagram account?
Elan - It was a few years ago when I was still online dating. I was walking through a UNIQLO in New York and a "chatbot" started sending me messages, asking me to come over. I responded by telling it that I was on fire and asked it to send help, but it just kept asking me to log on to a private service to watch it dance. That's when I thought: "This is a nightmare."
3 - The Tinder Nightmares following has grown to 1.8 million. Did you ever have a specific goal to grow your audience this significantly?
Elan - I had grown Texts From Your Ex to 1 million followers pretty quickly, so I had this goal to try to get Tinder Nightmares to 25k over the course of a weekend. I was very lucky and got about 100k in just a few days. It was very relatable.
4 - For those who haven't heard of Unspirational, what exactly is it? And what are all of the social media accounts that fall under the Unspirational umbrella?
Elan - Unspirational was my first account. It was a response to the overwhelming nonsensical positivity people were posting online and to this day I am just trying to balance out some of the insanity I see out there.
The associated accounts are: @ unspirational @ textsfromyourex @ yourshittyfamily @ tindernightmares and the quiet (as of now) @ weshouldbreakup.
5 - Have you been able to (or been willing to) monetize the social media followings you've acquired?
Elan - I have partnered with some brands and created some ads for some movies, tv shows and apps. But not too many. I try to keep things relatively organic. Also, Tinder Nightmares, Your Shitty Family, and Texts From Your Ex have all become books. In 2019 there will be an Unspirational calendar!
6 - Are you ever suspicious that the Tinder Nightmares you're receiving might be fake or photoshopped?
Elan - I think it's possible, but it's usually easy to tell when someone is trying too hard. I can't guarantee that every single one is completely authentic, but I do my absolute best to filter out anyone with multiple submissions or who seems to be "writing content." I also don't tag people, which is a disincentive for fakers.
7 - What's the most cringe-worthy Tinder Nightmare you've ever received?
Elan - I just posted one this week that was a real match from distant cousins. That is a true nightmare.
8 - You've managed to utilize content from these accounts to create books, which can be purchased on Amazon. In your opinion, have these book sales been successful?
Elan - Sales for Tinder Nightmares and Your Shitty Family wildly exceeded my expectations. Both are available at Urban Outfitters and people love them. Texts was great too, but I partnered with a British publisher, and while they were great, I think we just got off to a slower start and then sales seemed to suffer. Tinder Nightmares so far has been the highest seller at around 50,000 copies.
9 - What is your favorite Instagram account to follow?
Elan - I mostly just follow people I know in real life. I like James Gunn as he provides a lot of content from the sets of his films and also cute dog pictures. A perfect blend.
10 - Who are the top three followers of any of your Instagram accounts that you're most excited to have following you?
Elan - Again, James Gunn, but also Patton Oswalt and Lena Dunham are recent followers that made me nervous to share my content. As it should be!
11 - What advice would you give to someone who is trying to start his/her own humorous Instagram account?
Elan - Do something original and relatable and don't steal jokes. If you're funny, people will find you.
12 - On average, how much time per day do you spend on social media?
Elan - I mean, probably 6 hours, but that's over small increments. Probably because I get a lot of news from Twitter and also enjoy fighting with elected representatives.
13 -Despite all of your success, you've said that you have a great deal of insecurity. Why do you think that is?
Elan - Because the world is full of people who are better than you and me. More charitable. More interesting. Smarter. Taller. Funnier. To be aware is to be insecure!
14 - Your book, You're not that Great (but neither is anyone else), came out on Dec. 5. Why should someone buy this book?
Elan - First and foremost, I think people will just get a kick out of it. It's the antithesis of every self help book out there. But at the end of the day, I really think it can improve your life. Being self aware is half the battle when it comes to accomplishing anything.
15 - I get the sense you hate Instagram inspirational quotes. Why?
Elan - They insist you "feel better" when they should help you "be better." It's a subtle difference, but it's important.
16 - I understand you recently helped fundraise $30,000 for Next Door Solutions as part of your birthday tradition. Why is this non-profit important to you?
Elan - A musician I admire, John Darnielle, posted a link to their site about 5 years ago. I gave them a small donation and then I went up north to San Jose and visited their facilities. Once you see how much time, energy and money it takes to help people who are victims of domestic violence, you know you need to at least try to pitch in.
17 - This blog post interview is being featured on Steemit: a cryptocurrency-backed social media platform that rewards content other users find interesting. Would you ever consider creating a Steemit account for yourself or any of your Unspirational themes?
Elan - I would personally create a Steemit account. I am just generally interested in seeing how these things go and with the current Bitcoin bubble (or is it a bubble?) it will be interesting to see how things unfold.
18 - Where do you see yourself five years from now?
Elan - I have absolutely no idea and that's very terrifying and liberating at the same time.
19 - You get to have dinner with three people, living or dead. Who are you eating with?
Elan - If I could do this, I would like to have dinner with John Cleese and Meryl Streep and they would be alive, and the third person would be my neighbor Gary, but he would be dead.
20 - What is one thing very few people know about you?
Elan - I'm pretty open, so I'm not sure how much there is. Hmmm. I used to hate cilantro but I love it so much now I think I would die without it.
A big thank-you to the hilarious Elan Gale for taking on these 20 questions.
As always, thanks to all of you for taking the time to read.
Who would you like to see me throw 20 questions at? Drop me a comment below and I'll work on setting up the interview.
If you like what you read, be sure to follow my blog!
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