The entire early stage internet raises its hands and says "w'oah there!!! we could have been paid for all that?"
Creativity was its own reward.
Just need the AI robots to feed us and we can stop worrying about the monetisation of digital assets.
The reward was the fact that something you did had permanence in a way that allowed others who knew how to see or interact with "it".
Now anyone with a phone can create and consume (and acknowledge). Taking that for granted was the 2010s. I suspect the 2020s will be about getting paid for it - and what better fuel than a COVID imposed lockdown to stoke the young blaze?
I'm waiting for those robots too!