Wit in Real Life

In 2014, before Instagram Stories existed, I started an Instagram account called Wit in Real Life.

I had recently been introduced to someone through a mutual friend who had remarked how “chill” and “normal” I seemed. The offhand slight was most certainly not meant to sting but to invite connection. But for me, knowing that I was being perceived before ever having the benefit of making a first impression was a reality of my job I hadn’t come to peace with. The interaction stuck with me, and I obsessed about what I could do to balance the scales.

At this time, Instagram was at the height of what made it Instagram—the name of the game was crafting the perfect photo with trending filters to add to the curation of your *personal brand.* Posting a dimly lit, poorly composed photo was an act of rebellion—or, as a fellow blogger told me as I posted a picture of my Negroni from the back of a dark bar, “just bad practice” for growing an Instagram account.