Hi, Desiree. What kind of growth do you want and in what time frame? You may have to face down the needlessly judgmental folks in your community, regardless of whether you're ready.

I have a similar concern with not wanting to out myself as a satire and humor writer (who is writing some sneaky creative nonfiction) to the academic community when I don't enjoy the protections of tenure. I fear that I'll write something that will make it difficult to attain teaching and counseling assignments.

For now, I'm just happy to get to the next hundred followers here and to keep my academic adventures separate. As I grow as an educator and as a non-academic writer, I become more comfortable with each aspect. I'll fashion a dovetail for both at some point.

If you're looking to fast track things as a more 'pure' writer, you might have to figure out your digital persona sooner rather than later, so you can stand out in the crowd. I believe it's still a persona simply because it's curated. Kind of like the stupid stuff I put in my bio.

I have an unloved secondary Insta where I communicate with Michele Maize once in a while and... that's about it. Come to think of it, Michele has her personal brand locked in on Insta and might be a good profile to check out. Good luck with everything!