Hello Mirror!
I’m O’Plérou, an Ivorian multidisciplinary creative and crypto enthusiast. I often describe myself as a “creative explorer between art, design, culture and technology”, and I love to merge my different interests into creative projects. Curiosity is what led me to web3, and it is one of the most exciting, exhausting, motivating and inspiring adventure I ever lived — and I’m here since only 7 months! Being a $WRITE race finalist is a BIG step in that web3 exploration, and I’m grateful for every...

Introducing MMXVII Collection: A Digital Art x AI x Social Token Experiment
August 7th 2022 Update: I burned the token originally mentioned in this article ($PLEXUS) and created a new one named $OPLEXUS. But the tokenomics stay the same.Today I decided to try a little experiment: mint multi-editions of lost artworks restored with AI, and use them to start a token-gated community. During my crypto journey, I read a lot of articles and attended many courses to learn about the space and try to see where I could fit: I explored NFTs, social tokens, DeFi, and recently DAO...

Introducing Zouzoukwa 🌍
“You cannot carry out fundamental change without a certain amount of madness. In this case, it comes from nonconformity, the courage to turn your back on the old formulas, the courage to invent the future. It took the madmen of yesterday for us to be able to act with extreme clarity today. I want to be one of those madmen. We must dare to invent the future.”— Thomas SankaraCreated as an illustration project to change the stereotypical and negative narratives within and about Africa, Zouzoukwa...
Reclaiming culture, rethinking creation, and rebuilding ownership onchain. Join me as I create cultural archives and share insights, tools, and lessons to help you build the onchain future :)
Hello Mirror!
I’m O’Plérou, an Ivorian multidisciplinary creative and crypto enthusiast. I often describe myself as a “creative explorer between art, design, culture and technology”, and I love to merge my different interests into creative projects. Curiosity is what led me to web3, and it is one of the most exciting, exhausting, motivating and inspiring adventure I ever lived — and I’m here since only 7 months! Being a $WRITE race finalist is a BIG step in that web3 exploration, and I’m grateful for every...

Introducing MMXVII Collection: A Digital Art x AI x Social Token Experiment
August 7th 2022 Update: I burned the token originally mentioned in this article ($PLEXUS) and created a new one named $OPLEXUS. But the tokenomics stay the same.Today I decided to try a little experiment: mint multi-editions of lost artworks restored with AI, and use them to start a token-gated community. During my crypto journey, I read a lot of articles and attended many courses to learn about the space and try to see where I could fit: I explored NFTs, social tokens, DeFi, and recently DAO...

Introducing Zouzoukwa 🌍
“You cannot carry out fundamental change without a certain amount of madness. In this case, it comes from nonconformity, the courage to turn your back on the old formulas, the courage to invent the future. It took the madmen of yesterday for us to be able to act with extreme clarity today. I want to be one of those madmen. We must dare to invent the future.”— Thomas SankaraCreated as an illustration project to change the stereotypical and negative narratives within and about Africa, Zouzoukwa...
Reclaiming culture, rethinking creation, and rebuilding ownership onchain. Join me as I create cultural archives and share insights, tools, and lessons to help you build the onchain future :)

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Something magical happened this month that pulled me back to the web3 universe after a ~3 year break, and I’m excited to share this journey with you • But first, some context:
In November 2021, I was an active member of the web3 ecosystem. Participating in DAOs, experimenting with tokens, collecting artwork, minting NFTs. I was trying to move my creativity on Ethereum, which I saw as heaven on earth.
I barely slept, barely ate, was always on Twitter and Discord. So, what was bound to happen, happened: I had a massive psychotic break due to burnout, and had to hit that reset button.
Fast forward to November 2024: I’m invited to co-host a web3 workshop at the French cultural center in Abidjan (big thanks to Cris D for organizing), alongside my creative partner-in-crime, Bleuvivant.
Getting ready for this workshop has been like rediscovering a forgotten passion - diving back into the tech, trends, and possibilities of web3. And wow, has the landscape evolved!
Let’s be honest: my 2021 self was dreaming big but was disconnected from reality. I was all "Web3 is gonna let every creative instantly monetize their work and break free from the system!"
Sure, that dream isn’t dead, but now I see it needs a different approach. I wasn’t aware of a key element in this economy: community.
I was minting NFTs with no strategy, thinking my work would sell itself.
Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.
With over 50 NFTs minted and less than 5 sales, I learned the hard way that just creating isn’t enough: building a community isn’t important, it’s everything. You have to connect, engage, and build relationships.

Another mistake was minting expensive 1/1 NFTs, thinking that having open editions would devalue my work. Actually, it was the fear of facing the truth that I had less than 100 people willing to support me, which made me hide being that veil of exclusivity.
I now believe that building an onchain community supporting you is the most sustainable way to make a living as a creator in this new economy, and with platforms like Zora it’s getting easier.

Zora is a platform that allows you to create posts that can be minted by your supporters at $0.67 per mint. Do you know what’s amazing? They can just pay with their card!
It’s extremely easy to access, and there’s no scary onboarding like the 12 words of the seed phrase of Ethereum accounts. They can sign up with their email and support you, and this is a HUGE step towards massive use of web3!
Now some quick maths: Imagine you manage to build a community of 10k followers, and just 1% (100 people) mint each of your posts, that’s $60 per post. Post four times a week, and by month’s end you’re looking at $960✨
Where it gets really interesting, especially for creators in places like Côte d’Ivoire: that $960? It’s more than what many professionals with master’s degrees and 5 years of experience make monthly!
Of course it won’t be easy. The key? Building that community.
Web3 isn’t a get-rich quick scheme, it’s about putting in the work to create genuine connections and value. But when you do? The possibilities are so exciting!
My time away from web3 taught me something crucial: digital success needs to translate into real-world impact. Just last week, I earned more than a month’s salary through Base projects and memecoins(!!!) But instead of keeping it on my wallet like I would have done in 2021, I cashed out 70%.
Why? Because I don’t believe that web3 is about building a parallel economy, but about enhancing our real-world lives. When your digital earnings can pay rent, buy groceries, fund your next project, that’s when web3 becomes truly transformative.

This mindset shift has completely changed how I approach opportunities in the space. Instead of chasing every new trend or staying glued to Discord servers 24/7, I'm focusing on sustainable practices that align with my real-world goals. It's like finding that sweet spot between being plugged into the digital renaissance and staying grounded in what matters.
And that's the beauty of web3 in 2024: it's becoming less about the technology itself and more about the tangible possibilities it unlocks ✨
Thank you for reading!
This newsletter is my creative laboratory, where I'm documenting every twist and turn of my journey through the wild and wonderful world of onchain creation. I'll be sharing raw insights, discoveries, and yes, even the stumbles as we explore how Web3 is reshaping the creator economy.
Along the way, I'll take you behind the scenes of my own creative adventures, including the evolution of Zouzoukwa (my digital archive of African emojis) as it finds new life onchain. Think of this as your front-row seat to the future of creative expression, with a distinctly Ivorian perspective✨
What’s coming next
In the next edition, we'll explore what it really means to be an onchain creator. Not just the tech stuff, but the mindset shifts, the community building, and the strategic thinking that goes into making this work. Because let's be honest - the tools are amazing, but it's how we use them that matters!
Let’s Build Together!
I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences:
What excites you most about the creator economy in Web3?
What challenges are you facing in your journey?
What topics would you like me to explore in future newsletters?
Drop your thoughts in the comments, or find me on Warpcast or Twitter. Your insights will help shape future editions of this newsletter!
Want to Support This Journey?
If this resonates with you:
Subscribe and share this newsletter with another creator who might benefit from it
Mint this post on Zora & Follow me there :)
See you in the next edition! ✨
Something magical happened this month that pulled me back to the web3 universe after a ~3 year break, and I’m excited to share this journey with you • But first, some context:
In November 2021, I was an active member of the web3 ecosystem. Participating in DAOs, experimenting with tokens, collecting artwork, minting NFTs. I was trying to move my creativity on Ethereum, which I saw as heaven on earth.
I barely slept, barely ate, was always on Twitter and Discord. So, what was bound to happen, happened: I had a massive psychotic break due to burnout, and had to hit that reset button.
Fast forward to November 2024: I’m invited to co-host a web3 workshop at the French cultural center in Abidjan (big thanks to Cris D for organizing), alongside my creative partner-in-crime, Bleuvivant.
Getting ready for this workshop has been like rediscovering a forgotten passion - diving back into the tech, trends, and possibilities of web3. And wow, has the landscape evolved!
Let’s be honest: my 2021 self was dreaming big but was disconnected from reality. I was all "Web3 is gonna let every creative instantly monetize their work and break free from the system!"
Sure, that dream isn’t dead, but now I see it needs a different approach. I wasn’t aware of a key element in this economy: community.
I was minting NFTs with no strategy, thinking my work would sell itself.
Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.
With over 50 NFTs minted and less than 5 sales, I learned the hard way that just creating isn’t enough: building a community isn’t important, it’s everything. You have to connect, engage, and build relationships.

Another mistake was minting expensive 1/1 NFTs, thinking that having open editions would devalue my work. Actually, it was the fear of facing the truth that I had less than 100 people willing to support me, which made me hide being that veil of exclusivity.
I now believe that building an onchain community supporting you is the most sustainable way to make a living as a creator in this new economy, and with platforms like Zora it’s getting easier.

Zora is a platform that allows you to create posts that can be minted by your supporters at $0.67 per mint. Do you know what’s amazing? They can just pay with their card!
It’s extremely easy to access, and there’s no scary onboarding like the 12 words of the seed phrase of Ethereum accounts. They can sign up with their email and support you, and this is a HUGE step towards massive use of web3!
Now some quick maths: Imagine you manage to build a community of 10k followers, and just 1% (100 people) mint each of your posts, that’s $60 per post. Post four times a week, and by month’s end you’re looking at $960✨
Where it gets really interesting, especially for creators in places like Côte d’Ivoire: that $960? It’s more than what many professionals with master’s degrees and 5 years of experience make monthly!
Of course it won’t be easy. The key? Building that community.
Web3 isn’t a get-rich quick scheme, it’s about putting in the work to create genuine connections and value. But when you do? The possibilities are so exciting!
My time away from web3 taught me something crucial: digital success needs to translate into real-world impact. Just last week, I earned more than a month’s salary through Base projects and memecoins(!!!) But instead of keeping it on my wallet like I would have done in 2021, I cashed out 70%.
Why? Because I don’t believe that web3 is about building a parallel economy, but about enhancing our real-world lives. When your digital earnings can pay rent, buy groceries, fund your next project, that’s when web3 becomes truly transformative.

This mindset shift has completely changed how I approach opportunities in the space. Instead of chasing every new trend or staying glued to Discord servers 24/7, I'm focusing on sustainable practices that align with my real-world goals. It's like finding that sweet spot between being plugged into the digital renaissance and staying grounded in what matters.
And that's the beauty of web3 in 2024: it's becoming less about the technology itself and more about the tangible possibilities it unlocks ✨
Thank you for reading!
This newsletter is my creative laboratory, where I'm documenting every twist and turn of my journey through the wild and wonderful world of onchain creation. I'll be sharing raw insights, discoveries, and yes, even the stumbles as we explore how Web3 is reshaping the creator economy.
Along the way, I'll take you behind the scenes of my own creative adventures, including the evolution of Zouzoukwa (my digital archive of African emojis) as it finds new life onchain. Think of this as your front-row seat to the future of creative expression, with a distinctly Ivorian perspective✨
What’s coming next
In the next edition, we'll explore what it really means to be an onchain creator. Not just the tech stuff, but the mindset shifts, the community building, and the strategic thinking that goes into making this work. Because let's be honest - the tools are amazing, but it's how we use them that matters!
Let’s Build Together!
I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences:
What excites you most about the creator economy in Web3?
What challenges are you facing in your journey?
What topics would you like me to explore in future newsletters?
Drop your thoughts in the comments, or find me on Warpcast or Twitter. Your insights will help shape future editions of this newsletter!
Want to Support This Journey?
If this resonates with you:
Subscribe and share this newsletter with another creator who might benefit from it
Mint this post on Zora & Follow me there :)
See you in the next edition! ✨
I just want to congratulate you on your journey and how inspiring you are. Thank you for the quality content and sharing your rich personal experience. I wish you every success in this web3 renaissance.
Oh I just saw this, thank you so much Marie!!
2 comments
I just want to congratulate you on your journey and how inspiring you are. Thank you for the quality content and sharing your rich personal experience. I wish you every success in this web3 renaissance.
Oh I just saw this, thank you so much Marie!!