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'Are You John Green?'

2026-07-28 · letter vlog · John · 4:35 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Internet & YouTube (also: Philosophy & meaning) · mode: Personal essay · tags: self promotion

A young person at a movie theater wasn't sure whether to say hi to John. He answers yes, please say hi: being recognized affirms his work, and he loves meeting nerdfighters. But being perceived also pulls both people out of the private, insensible waters of unselfconscious life, which is both uncomfortable and a gift.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — A young person at a movie theater doesn't know whether to say hi; John's complaint to Chris about being recognized at Target

  • ★★ In a movie theater a young person told John they didn't know whether to say hi; John makes the video about whether you should. — 00:00:00
  • ★★ Years ago John complained to his best friend Chris that he couldn't go to Target without being recognized; Chris said he is recognized there too, by old classmates, and doesn't complain. (playful) — 00:00:00

00:00:29 — Everyone gets recognized; experiencing oneself from within; Annie Dillard's insensible waters as nourishing

  • ★★ John calls Chris's point a great one: whether or not we have public lives, we all get recognized in public. — 00:00:29
  • ★★★ John feels a distance between how he experiences himself and how the world experiences him; alone or with family he experiences himself from within and isn't self-conscious. — 00:00:29
  • ★★★ Citing Annie Dillard's image of the private, insensible waters we live in, John says he finds those waters nourishing rather than useless: they give him strength to emerge and observe with acuity. — 00:00:58
  • ★★ John says that if he were always hyper-aware of himself he would be exhausted all the time, and a bit narcissistic. — 00:00:58

00:01:27 — John's first recognition for his work on a New York City train, and why recognition still feels like affirmation

  • ★★★ The first time John was recognized for his work came before YouTube: a young woman on a New York City train asked if he was John Green, said she'd read Looking for Alaska, and got his autograph. — 00:01:27 · New York City, YouTube, Looking for Alaska (novel)
  • ★ John notes that before the iPhone, the autograph rather than the selfie was the celebrity proof of life. (playful) — 00:01:27
  • ★★ John spent the whole day after that encounter buzzing, and is sure it meant more to him than to the woman who recognized him. — 00:01:59
  • ★★★ John says we all want outside affirmation for our work and to be acknowledged for doing a good job; being recognized felt, and still feels, like that. — 00:01:59
  • ★★ John is super grateful when people tell him his work has meant something to them. — 00:01:59

00:02:28 — Yes, say hi; being perceived wakes both people from the waters; wanting to be perceived on tour versus conflicted feelings about celebrity

  • ★★★ John's short answer is yes, please say hi; he will take a selfie if you want one and is grateful you care about his work. — 00:02:28

  • ★★★ John says such a meeting snatches both people out of the insensible waters into hyper-awareness: he stops being his dimly defined self and becomes John Green, the novelist and YouTuber. — 00:02:28 · YouTube

    “a dimly defined creature I am too busy being to carefully consider”

  • ★★ John says being perceived is always a trip, like waking from a dream unsure whether the real world is the one where he is himself or the one where he is John Green. — 00:02:58

  • ★★ John says he is often desperate to be perceived: he wants everyone in Birmingham, New York City and 17 other cities to see him on the Hollywood, Ending tour. — 00:02:58 · New York City, Hollywood, Ending
  • ★★★ John feels so conflicted about celebrity that he wrote a book about it, and did not particularly enjoy his time near the center of US pop culture, when Kim Kardashian was tweeting about him. — 00:03:27 · celebrity
  • ★★ John says he really loves meeting nerdfighters. — 00:03:27 · Nerdfighteria
  • ★★★ John concludes that being woken from the insensible waters is both uncomfortable and a gift, just like running into a middle-school classmate at Chipotle. — 00:03:27
  • ★★ John says no one should feel obliged to say hi (he may be with his family), but everyone should feel free to, though it wakes them both from a dream. — 00:03:27

00:03:56 — What John actually said; being recognized as Hank in Philadelphia; tour tickets and sign-off

  • ★ What John actually said to the young woman was simply that of course, hi, it was nice to meet her. — 00:03:56
  • ★★ John says that these days half the time he is recognized as Hank: in Philadelphia on the Everything Is Tuberculosis tour, someone shouted 'Hank Green' and he waved, happy to take credit. (playful) — 00:03:56 · Hank Green, Everything Is Tuberculosis
  • ★★ John hopes to see many viewers on tour (tickets in the doobly-doo) and a few at Target. (playful) — 00:04:25 · Hollywood, Ending, doobly-doo

In the description and comments

  • ★★ The description invites viewers to get tickets to the Hollywood, Ending tour or pre-order a signed book at hollywoodendingbook.com. — video description · Hollywood, Ending

Threads in this video

Mentioned

Central: celebrity · Self-awareness

Also: People: Annie Dillard · Chris Waters · Kim Kardashian

Works: Everything Is Tuberculosis · Hollywood, Ending · Looking for Alaska (novel)

Organizations: Chipotle Mexican Grill · Target Corporation · YouTube

Terms: doobly-doo

Concepts: selfie

Places: Birmingham, Alabama · New York City · Philadelphia

Products: iPhone

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