Disaster preparedness for creatives
Beyond the every day concerns we all face during potential disasters, if you’re a writer or artist who works with computers, you also think about the work you’d lose if you have to leave your computer behind.
My immediate area made it through the hurricane without much damage. I personally got very lucky. It reminded me I needed to talk about backups. I have two projects I’m working on where I don’t even have one backup. If I have a computer issue, I lose all of those (about 25K words combined). They’re practice so I’m less worried about them … but I’m aware of exactly how much pain I’ll feel if my computer dies or I run into some other issue.1
If you’re working with cloud apps and storing your creativity there, you’re generally fine from a physical disaster.2
If you’re not using cloud storage, there’s a backup mantra to remember: 3, 2, 1.
It means if you have (3) backups in (2) physically separate locations (one of which is not your house), then you will always have at least (1) copy of your data. It’s a guideline so there are potential situations where you still wouldn’t have even one copy but in those cases, you’d probably have more immediate concerns.
A gap anywhere on (3) and/or (2) is going to cause you heartache if something happens to your computer or house.
For most of us, failed equipment is more likely more often then other scenarios (climate change might change that scale) but a lot of people are getting by without even one backup.
If you don’t have money to spare, one free cloud storage solution is one heck of a lot better than having no backup at all.
Time for me to stop sermonizing.
I hope you’re well.