Even tho I’m the primary audience these days, I generally don’t send anything big out to the public before someone near me says they like it. I try not to ask for an opinion until I’ve gone through the project several times myself.
During creation, I’ll talk about the concepts and watch for reactions.
Working months on a project that’s meant to go out to the world without any friend, relative, coworker, acquaintance, or so much as an unnamed person on the bus who recognizes you after you’ve travelled together a few times giving an opinion on it would be unnerving.