why we make art
2026-01-13 · letter vlog · John · 4:18 · watch on YouTube
Topic: Books & writing · mode: Personal essay · tags: community lore, fundraising ask, civic or action cta, calendar ritual
John tells Hank he has spent recent weeks in 'Cheyenne, Wyoming', his Rushmore-derived shorthand for being engrossed in writing, and says that where he once thought art existed solely for its audience, he now thinks making art is meaningful and fun in itself: writing is for him, and only hopefully also for readers.
What is said
The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).
00:00:00 — Cheyenne, Wyoming: the Rushmore line and John's shorthand for being engrossed in writing
- ★★ John says he only appears to be in Indianapolis: he is in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he has been for most of the last few weeks. — 00:00:00 · Indianapolis, Cheyenne, Wyoming
- ★ John says he does not mean the real Cheyenne, the largest city in Wyoming, with a population of 65,000. — 00:00:00
- ★★ John explains that in Rushmore's play about the Vietnam War a soldier says he is not here but in Cheyenne, Wyoming; since first seeing the film at 21, John uses it for being fully engrossed in writing. — 00:00:00 · Cheyenne, Wyoming
- ★ John loves fictions within fictions that exist only in fragments, like An Imperial Affliction in The Fault in Our Stars or the play in Rushmore. — 00:00:00 · The Fault in Our Stars
00:00:58 — Why we make art, set up; mock sponsor message for P4A: matching fund and charity-nominating videos
- ★★ John tells Hank that Cheyenne, Wyoming is amazing and he will suffer almost anything to get there. — 00:00:58 · Cheyenne, Wyoming
- ★★ John says this time he finds himself thinking differently about why we make art and who we make it for. — 00:00:58
- ★★ John says the Project for Awesome, an annual fundraiser, has raised over $20 million for charity. — 00:00:58 · Project for Awesome
- ★★ In a mock 'message from our sponsor', John announces that the Project for Awesome begins in less than one month. (playful) — 00:00:58 · Project for Awesome
- ★★ John tells viewers they can join the P4A matching fund by donating $500 or more at the link in the description. — 00:00:58 · Project for Awesome, doobly-doo · first in: 2022-02-08, How Much Money Vlogbrothers Makes from YouTube (...and where it goes)
- ★★ John tells viewers they can nominate a charity to receive P4A funds by making a video before February 8th; the description asks them to make one. — 00:00:58 · Project for Awesome
00:01:27 — From 'books belong to their readers' to writing for himself: making art is fun, explores the mind, and gives him something to think about; sign-off
- ★★★ When younger, John thought art existed solely for the audience ('books belong to their readers'): the artist's only job was to make a gift for others, about them rather than himself. — 00:01:27
- ★★ John used to think a writer's job was to leave readers enough space to find consolation and encouragement; this is why art differs from a private journal. — 00:01:27
- ★★ John says one problem with that view is that he cannot keep himself out of his books, since his is the only interiority he has ever experienced. — 00:01:56
- ★★★ More importantly, John says that view misses that there is pleasure and meaning in making art regardless of whether anyone experiences it: making art is fun, and that is part of why we do it. — 00:01:56
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★★ John says making art is not easy, but contrary to popular belief easy and fun are not synonyms. — 00:02:26
“contrary to popular belief, easy and fun are not synonyms”
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★★ John hopes people eventually see the novel he is working on, but even if they don't, he has gotten a lot out of it. — 00:02:26
- ★★ John says writing lets him visit rooms in his mind he can't reach any other way; making things up explores reality as it is and might be, and his own consciousness. — 00:02:26
- ★★ John says that, though easy to forget amid publishing pressures, writing is literally child's play: he has done it for fun since he was four or five, audience or not. — 00:02:55
- ★★ John says having something to think about is highly underrated: in Cheyenne, Wyoming he is never bored alone with his thoughts, always working on the story, a problem or a character. — 00:02:55 · Cheyenne, Wyoming
- ★★★ These days John thinks writing is for him, and only also, hopefully, at some point for the reader. — 00:03:24
- ★★ John loves when a story takes over his brain and becomes all he wants to think about, like falling in love, when everything reminds you of the person. — 00:03:24
- ★★ John thinks he has made three videos about Cheyenne, Wyoming in the last ten years, about how often he has been able to get there; it took a few years to get back. (hedged) — 00:03:53 · Cheyenne, Wyoming
- ★★ John says getting to Cheyenne is hard, but the feeling is so good he will work hard for it, and it is always worth the trip. — 00:03:53 · Cheyenne, Wyoming
Threads in this video
- callback · John's 'Cheyenne, Wyoming': his shorthand, from Rushmore, for being deeply immersed in a project (2017) — John explains that in Rushmore's play about the Vietnam War a soldier says he is not here but in Cheyenne, Wyoming; since first seeing the film at 21, John uses it for being fully engrossed in writing. (00:00:00)
- reminder · Hank asks donors of more than $500 to join the P4A 2026 matching fund at projectforawesome.com/matching (2026) — John tells viewers they can join the P4A matching fund by donating $500 or more at the link in the description. (00:00:58)
- asked · John asks viewers to make a P4A 2026 video nominating a charity by February 8 (2026) — John tells viewers they can nominate a charity to receive P4A funds by making a video before February 8th; the description asks them to make one. (00:00:58)
- restate · Why make things? — More importantly, John says that view misses that there is pleasure and meaning in making art regardless of whether anyone experiences it: making art is fun, and that is part of why we do it. (00:01:56)
- refine · What is art for? — These days John thinks writing is for him, and only also, hopefully, at some point for the reader. (00:03:24)
- refine · Does the author's intent matter to what a work means? — John says one problem with that view is that he cannot keep himself out of his books, since his is the only interiority he has ever experienced. (00:01:56)
Where the stories that moved here went next
- John asks viewers to make a P4A 2026 video nominating a charity by February 8 (2026) — the project it belongs to reported its result; last: reminder, 2026-01-16
Mentioned
Central: Cheyenne, Wyoming
Also: Projects: Project for Awesome
Works: The Fault in Our Stars
Terms: doobly-doo
Concepts: authorial intent · boredom · consciousness
Places: Cheyenne, Wyoming (city) · Indianapolis
Events: Vietnam War
Characters: An Imperial Affliction
Only in the description or credits: Rushmore (film)
Also centred on Cheyenne, Wyoming: Cheyenne, Wyoming · I Ain't Even Here, Sergeant. I'm in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Later videos replying to this one
- 2026-01-20 · Am I ... Good? (John) — continues — “It's an extension of what I talked about last week.” (00:02:40)