You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)

by Felicia Day

I like to refer to myself as “situationally recognizable.”

It’s way better than “internet famous,”

My story demonstrates that there’s no better time in history to have a

dream and be able to reach an audience with your art. Or just be as weird as you want to be and not have to be ashamed. That lesson’s just as legit.

Along with being able to communicate telepathically with my dog.

I don’t mean to imply that Mom was completely hands-off with our educations. She did stuff. When she got interested in something, she’d say, “Let’s go learn about history!” and we’d jump in the car and drive around the state for a few days visiting all the Civil War memorial sites. (It’s super fun to roll down a grassy hill where thousands of Confederate bodies are buried.)

Naturally, I became obsessed with detective pulp fiction. Perry Mason was my favorite. Not the actor

Raymond Burr. I hated him; he was bulky, and his skull looked creepy underneath his skin.

They say that the root of everything you are lies in your childhood. Every emotional problem, every screwed-up relationship, every misplaced passion and career problem you can blame on the way you were raised.

But here’s the part I unapologetically embrace: My weirdness turned into my greatest strength in life. It’s why I’m who I am today and have the career I have.

Growing up without being judged by other kids allowed me to be okay with liking things no one else liked.

I can’t imagine being as confident about my passion for geeky things today without that opportunity to connect with OTHER people who were saying, “Wow, I love those geeky things, too!”

If someone’s takeaway from this story is “Felicia Day said don’t study!,” I’ll punch you in the face. But I AM saying don’t chase perfection for perfection’s sake, or for anyone else’s sake at all. If you strive for something, make sure it’s for the right reasons. And if you fail, that will be a better lesson for you than any success you’ll

ever have. Because you learn a lot from screwing up.

When the system you want to be a part of so badly turns you into someone you’re unhappy with and you lose sight of yourself, is it worth it?

We all have periods of our life where we’re trapped, doing something we hate, and we develop habits that have nothing to do with our long-term goals to fill the downtime.

I knew it was bad. But even living with a constant Gee, something is seriously wrong here . . . feeling, I wasn’t able to make myself STOP and get control of my life.

No matter what you feel is holding you back in life . . .

You’re never weird when you’re surrounded by people who are weird like you, right?

There are enough negative forces in this world—don’t let the pessimistic voice that lives inside you get away with that stuff, too. That voice is NOT a good roommate.

What’s wrong with finding joy in making something, regardless of the inspiration?

Then pretend to say, “I have severe depression and anxiety, and I’m having

lot of bad days lately.” They just look at you like you’re broken, right? Unfixable. Inherently flawed. Maybe not someone they want to hang around as much?

I didn’t feel brave enough to make fixing my mind a priority because I didn’t think anyone would understand.

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”

Weathering the rough times requires a lot of self-confidence outside the things you can’t control, like career and what other people think of you.

You made something great. And something new will come around. Or not. Either way, do the work you love. And love yourself. That’s all you can do in this world in order to be happy.

I’m the Sean Bean of sci-fi women.

Find new ways to encourage people to create, or push girls to embrace who they are outside of what society tells them they should be.