Last weeks post received a lot of interest and I had a lot of people asking me just where they could create their own Dark Forest… so here’s a very quick run-down with a re-cap for those who’ve just dropped in today.
You know that feeling. The one where you post something you actually care about, something you poured your soul into, and it just… evaporates into the algorithmic void. Or worse, it gets chewed up and spat back at you by a bot that scraped your style and is now doing a sad, soulless impersonation of your work. The Clearnet, the mainstream web, it’s become a digital shopping mall full of animatronic salespeople screaming at you to buy shit you don’t need. It’s exhausting, and it’s getting harder and harder to find a real human being in the crowd.
So where do we go? We retreat. We go into the woods.
Yancey Strickler, who you might know from that Kickstarter thing, came up with this idea called the “Dark Forest Theory of the Internet”. The basic idea is that in response to all the ads, the tracking, the trolling, and the hype, we’re all scurrying back into the shadows. We’re leaving the brightly lit, algorithm-driven public squares for smaller, more intimate spaces where depressurized conversation is actually possible.
It’s not about going completely off the grid, it’s about being intentional. It’s about finding your people. Think about it: a newsletter landing in someone’s inbox, a private Slack channel, a Discord server full of weirdos who share your specific obsession, a password-protected message board. These are the new dark forests. They’re non-indexed, non-optimized, non-gamified. You don’t go there to perform for an algorithm; you go there to talk to other humans.
For creatives, this is a lifeline. It’s a return to the feeling of the early internet, where you could geek out with strangers in a forum and discover something genuinely new, not something an algorithm decided would keep you scrolling for another 3.2 seconds. As they say in the Dark Forest, you build communities through inside jokes, shared aesthetics, and a kind of collective “lore” that outsiders just don’t get. It’s subversive, it’s authentic, and it’s the opposite of the sanitized, corporate hellscape of the Clearnet.
So, you want to build a fort in the digital woods? I’ve compiled a list of the best places to start your own secret society. The good news? A lot of them don’t cost a damn thing.
Free Platforms (Because Money is for Grown-Ups)
- The Studio: This is a new, private, and completely free community designed specifically for creatives who are fed up with big social media. It’s a “distraction-free sanctuary” with no algorithms and no like buttons, which forces you to be more intentional about your connections. It’s been described as feeling like the early days of the internet, where it was all about the conversation, not self-promotion. A real “breath of fresh air,” as one member put it.
- Cara: This is a social media platform built by artists, for artists. Their big selling point? A strict “No AI” policy. It’s a gallery-like feed showcasing digital and traditional art. It’s free to use and has a chronological feed, meaning you don’t have to fight an algorithm to get your work seen.
- Cosmos: If you’re looking for an ad-free, anti-AI slop space for inspiration, check out Cosmos. It’s a visual “taste builder” that focuses on high-quality imagery and is much more curated than your average Pinterest feed. It’s a space where you can collect ideas without the distraction of an algorithm telling you what to like.
- Are.na: Described as “playlists, but for ideas,” Are.na is a collaborative platform that’s perfect for collecting content and going down creative rabbit holes. It’s ad-free and highly curated, encouraging you to make connections and step outside your usual bubble. The free version has some limitations on storage, but it’s a great place to start building your own archive of inspiration.
- Discord & Slack: The classic “Dark Forest” habitats. The free versions of both are perfect for building a hyper-niche community of like-minded creatives. You can create a server with channels for workshopping ideas, sharing resources, and just shooting the shit without the public nature of an Instagram comment section. The connections you make in these spaces often feel like real friendships.
- Skool: While many communities on Skool are paid, there are free ones like “The Creative Spark,” which positions itself as a cozy, low-pressure place to rekindle your creativity. It’s a private space where you can share your messy work-in-progress and have gentle, supportive conversations without the pressure of “the grind.” It’s a great example of the kind of non-gamified community that’s popping up outside the Clearnet.
- Jabburr: This app bills itself as a private social marketplace that won’t sell your data and uses zero tracking or algorithms. It combines social networking, a free marketplace, and event ticketing. It’s built for creators and communities who want to connect organically, not based on engagement manipulation. The platform even mentions its goal is “Less scrolling, more living.” A concept, I know.
The “Nearly Free” or Premium Option
- The Clearnet Adjacent: While not inherently private, platforms like Bluesky and Threads are often cited as new frontier spaces by creatives looking to escape the chaos of Twitter. They offer a chance to build a new community from the ground up, where engagement can feel more meaningful and less performative. However, they are still public and can be subject to the same pitfalls as the Clearnet if they get too big.
The point, folks, is that the culture isn’t dead. It’s just moving. It’s going underground. It’s leaving the mall and going back to the underground clubs. It’s realizing that the only way to save your creative soul is to stop trying to win a popularity contest on a dying platform. It’s about creating work with a pulse in a world full of synthetic sameness.
So find your dark forest (don’t spread yourself too think – remember you need to be where your audience is). Build your fort. Start talking. Let the bots have the wasteland.
So what’s the takeaway from all this forest-dwelling?
Look, I’m not saying you should go full hermit and never promote your work again. The Dark Forest is where you go to breathe, to connect, to create stuffthat actually matters. But you still need to let people know you exist. The trick isn’t to become another soulless marketer shouting into the void, it’s to market with intention, with integrity, and then get the hell back to your work before the algorithms suck you back in.
That’s exactly what my book, Digital Marketing for Creatives, is about. It’s not another f*cking growth-hacking manual written by some tech bro who thinks “authenticity” is a strategy. It’s a guide for artists, writers, musicians, and makers who want to cut through the noise, reach the people who actually give a shit, and then spend the rest of their time doing what they were put on this planet to do: creating.
The world needs artists. It needs your voice, your vision, your weird, beautiful, singular take on all this madness. This book will help you build a sustainable, low-bullshit marketing practice that works for you, not the other way around. Less time screaming into the void, more time making the void worth screaming about.
Now go make something real. I’ll be in my studio.
I’ve been giving my opinion on digital marketing for creatives for over two years. Every week I give free, useful advice and tips for creatives who want to spend more time creating and less time marketing. If you’ve found any of these articles useful you could always buy me a coffee.
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