I live in rural Toyama, Japan, where as of this writing there still haven’t been any confirmed cases of Coronavirus. All the stores, restaurants, and other businesses are open as usual, with the exception of special events and large gatherings. The rest of the world, though, doesn’t have it so lucky.
Back in the States, as I’m sure you’re aware, a lot of stuff is closed, and is expected to stay closed for a while. And while the government’s approved a $2.2 trillion dollar economic package to help out just about every sector of the economy, a fair amount of that money is actually going to huge multibillion dollar corporations. Even with the extra help, small businesses and independent contractors are still going to have a rough time.
The Great Recession that happened after 2008 was a rough time for a lot of people, including me—I needed a full-time job when I got back from Japan and had a lot of trouble finding one. Then, when I finally got one, the pay was pretty mediocre, and it was hard for me to get back to living on my own again. It’s pretty depressing to think that we might be headed for similar times.
Recessions Are Hard on Non-Essential Sectors of the Economy
Back in February I talked with creative Renaissance Man Andrew Marshall, who earns his living entirely from contract work and selling his art. He said that when he was working for Georgia Public Broadcasting and the 2008 recession hit, one of the first things people did was stop donating to public broadcasting, and the network suffered as a result. That wasn’t cool.
That sentiment stuck with me a lot—the idea that when times are easy, people have more money to support the art, writing, music, and other creative work they care about, but when times get tough, people lose their expendable income and focus more on the essentials. This means that during tough economic times it’s exponentially harder for small-time creators to earn livings and do the work we all enjoy.
Help Out Creators and Businesses You Want to See Succeed
After the US government implemented COVID-19 social distancing, I got a newsletter email from my hometown bookstore, MainStreet BookEnds in Warner, New Hampshire, saying they were temporarily shutting their doors. Customers could still place online orders, and staff could meet them in the parking lot or make deliveries, but a big part of their customer base is now gone—including the customers who drop in after picking up a pharmacy order, grabbing a drink at the coffee shop, or filling out paperwork at Town Hall, since all these places are closed too.
BookEnds has been a big supporter of local writers, including me—they hosted my Japan talk and book signing back in August, and stock both my Eikaiwa Bums chapbook and the latest edition of the New Hampshire Writers’ Project Anthology I edited last year. They’re also a staple of the community, a place where kids go after school, and an all-around cool place to drop by on a Saturday afternoon.
As luck would have it, over the past few weeks I’ve also been taking an honest look at my financial situation. I’m not in debt anymore, I have a steady job with the Japanese government that more than covers my expenses, and I still live a pretty frugal life. It also looks like I’ll be getting the U.S. government’s $1,200 stimulus check for individuals even though I live abroad, which is a nice boost I wasn’t expecting. All told, I’ve been realizing that I’m in pretty good shape financially, and I want to start making smarter decisions about where my money goes.
So I emailed BookEnds about placing an order. Even though I won’t be back in the States to pick it up until August, now seemed like the right time.
Then I spent the weekend thinking about other small businesses, particularly in the literary world, that I wanted to help out with a little cash flow. I placed orders with some small presses whose work I think is cool, ordered a curated zine pack from this super-cool indie bookstore Quimby’s in Chicago, and decided now was the time to start supporting some creatives on Patreon whose work I’ve been enjoying for a long time.
(If you don’t know what Patreon is, it’s a service where artists of any kind can ask for donations, and fans sign up to send them a certain amount per month in exchange for rewards. The service gives artists a reliable way to monetize their work and gives fans an easy to make sure the work they love can keep getting made while letting them enjoy cool perks. Odds are that many of the Youtubers, musicians, artists, and writers you already follow probably have Patreons that you can use to support them, so you should check out Patreon if you haven’t already.)
I also sent a donation to New Hampshire Public Radio, whose morning show The Exchange I’ve been listening to on and off for the past decade, first on the radio and now in podcast form. I definitely wasn’t in a good enough place to donate ten years ago, but now, especially with a looming crisis, I can make financial support part of how I spend my money.
If You’re in a Place to Support the Work You Love, Now’s the Time
Maybe the COVID-19 disaster has hit your wallet hard—in which case, STOP READING THIS POST RIGHT NOW. Go stabilize your own finances first.
But for those of us who are still in decent financial shape, now would be an excellent time to support the creators whose work you’re passionate about, or the businesses you don’t want to see fail. This includes non-creative businesses—if your favorite pizza place is open for take-out, now might be a good time to place an order rather than heating up a DiGiorno’s.
And I know I said this before during Christmas, but please, PLEASE don’t buy from Amazon unless it’s absolutely necessary. In addition to treating their warehouse workers like disposable machines, they’ve also amassed an unholy amount of control over the bookselling market, which is all kinds of not cool. I get that Amazon might be some people’s only choice during social distancing (or the only way to get certain items), but for the rest of us, your money can do more good elsewhere.
Big businesses are going to make it through this—and the ones that don’t will just be replaced by other big businesses soon enough. The small businesses, independent contractors, and creators, though, might not be so lucky.
So take this opportunity to support independent art, and help all the creative people out there who don’t have Day Jobs, plus the businesses that are getting hit. Think about where you’re putting your money, because that shit matters—a lot.