As I near a year of publishing on Substack, I wonder what it is that motivated me to keep writing past my usual slump on other platforms. There’s an invigorating energy emanating from the service, and I’m like a surfer paddling to gain enough momentum to ride the wave. Or, more likely, I’ve conquered some doubts about what I want to do and the coincidental timing of finding a platform I like has created a perfect storm of opportunity.
Either way, we are out here together battling the choppy surf, or relaxing our feet in the sand (you can tell I just got back from vacation). I’m curious, what do you find to be the largest boon to your experience on Substack? And what is hampering your ability to break out of a rut? Maybe we can share knowledge or brainstorm a fix. I can’t wait to hear your thoughts! ~ WM
You’re doing a spectacular job on this platform, Winston. I enjoy this community you’re building and I think you’re doing a great job curating the content and being innovative in the way you’re developing the area you’ve carved out for yourself.
I personally prefer the app, because I’m finding it easy to use, and logging into it has become a new daily routine for me, whereas I didn’t go to the website except maybe once a week before I learned about the app. The app makes it really easy to like and comment on posts. And I enjoy the quality and thoughtfulness of the posts members of the community are contributing to your substack.
The email delivery issue I was having seems to have been resolved. I use gmail and it was simply a matter of teaching Google to not mark incoming emails from Substack as advertising. I did this by moving these emails out of the advertising folder and putting them back into the Inbox. Now I’m getting all the emails from both Substack and the Storyletter.
Thank you, Daniel!! I’m so glad you’re a part of this community. It really means a lot.
I like the app, too, for all the same reasons you mentioned. I think the new audio integration is a really huge upgrade. Have you seen that? The little headphones at the top right that indicate text-to-speech options. Only works on some posts for some reason.
I’m glad you were able to resolve the email issue. I think that has occurred on a much larger scale than I realize which is unfortunate for many of the earlier subscribers.
Thanks for commenting, and I hope to continue to cultivate an open space for creatives to communicate and grow!
I'm glad to hear you're feeling enthusiastic about your first year!
For myself, what I most like about the platform is that I don't have to do the heavy lifting of creating/transferring email lists, etc. That stuff happens organically and I can just publish and send to subscribers seamlessly. That was something I never mastered with the blog/contact form on my website, for example. Scheduling posts in advance is also really handy for me.
I like that it seems to be a relatively welcoming, open community that, from what I've seen in my (admittedly limited exposure), refrains from a lot of the unpleasantness out there on the rest of the internet and social media.
And, of course, I'm exposed to so many different writers and styles of writing here that I otherwise probably wouldn't encounter if I just waited for people to find my website or blog elsewhere. You never know what interesting things you might find when you step a little outside your everyday boundaries. Substack makes that a lot easier.
My least favorite thing is the lack of exposure on the wider site for fiction writers. The Leaderboard concept straight up sucks, and those tags are less than worthless. I wish there was a better way to organize and search fiction, especially serialized works. Fictionistas is great, but it's not ideal.
Also, I'd like to be able to customize my newsletter a little more.
But, those are pretty small quibbles. Mostly my "rut" is just due to the lack of people interested in my weird writing, which is fine and totally expected. Overall, I think it's going alright so far, considering I have pretty low expectations ;-)
Thanks, Jacquie! As always, I'm delighted with your insightful comments. I couldn't agree more in regards to the seamless nature enabled by the UI from the start of a post to the very end (along with scheduling). And it just keeps improving with each new update! They are really listening to their users, that's for certain.
Do you use the app at all? I'm hoping there are some general improvements made on there such as not being able to find 'sections' despite them being a prominent feature on my main page.
And I'm totally with you on the Discovery thing. I DO NOT LIKE IT. It only makes sense from a business perspective to put the biggest Substacks at the very top, but it makes discoverability for literally everyone else almost impossible. I think this will be remedied as time goes on and more "readers" start to use the app and website. I only have anecdotal evidence, but I'm under the impression that a majority of people simply don't know what Substack is. Everyone I talk to says, "I've heard of that, but what is it?"
I'd also like more customization. Even if it were a "paid" upgrade for more features, I'd probably do it. But at the same time, the simplicity of it forces me to focus on other things. Sometimes I forget that mailing lists have been around for a long time, so this type of program may be old news to other writers.
You'd be surprised at the amount of people that just don't like to comment, or since Substack might make them sign in again to "like" and "comment", they simply don't want to jump through hoops to do that but still like reading the emails. I totally understand where you are coming from though, and I'm astonished at the difficulty at converting subscriptions even among people I know in person. With each niche, there comes a niche audience. Our audiences are out there, we just need to find them somehow. I'm going to keep experimenting and let you know what works and what doesn't from my perspective.
Have you heard of the Pareto principle? I think about it often, and it's partly what drives my motivation. The more we work, the more likely we are to succeed. Sort of. It can be applied to a variety of things, which is probably why it's so compelling. Here's a link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle
I haven't tried the app yet. I had a bad experience with editing a post on my phone and finding that the changes had not saved when I resumed editing on my laptop. Since then I've resolved to only work in one space. It keeps things simpler and saner for me.
I wonder if part of the problem with discoverability is that writers are prompted to create their own tags/categories, and there seem to be duplicates of several of them. Perhaps if Substack offered a menu of categories to choose from there would be more consistency. Writers could suggest items to add, but they would need to be codified in the system in some way to avoid redundancy. Then, that entire index could also be made available on the Main page for readers to search rather than only the handful of leader categories they give now. Anyway, that's how I would design it...
And I don't disagree with the concept of a leaderboard necessarily, just that 1) i have no idea what their selection criteria are for determining who makes the list (more transparency would be nice) and 2) i've suggested a rotating list of randomly selected newsletters to spotlight new or unknown writers independent of their stats so we all get some much-needed exposure
I'd be interested in a paid upgrade for more features, but like you say, maybe less is more and forces me to focus on the important stuff...
I'm surprised also by how few people comment or "like" posts, though I can see they are being opened by quite a few! Either they don't enjoy the writing but can't be bothered to unsubscribe (but keep hate-reading every post ;-) or like you say, it's an inconvenience. I wish there was smoother process there as well.
I don't know much about the Pareto Principle, and I'm intrigued to hear how you are thinking about it in terms of writing, etc...
I'm confident we'll find our respective audiences. I don't expect mine to be huge, but it would be nice to reach a few readers somehow. It's always great chatting with you and hearing your ideas! Definitely keep me posted about your efforts and experiments :-)
The app is more reader-focused right now and doesn’t allow for editing posts in the app (which I find annoying), but I suppose one thing at a time. I do prefer reading in the app though as it allows for easier likes and commenting. However, like you said, writing is done on my computer.
I think you’re onto something with the tags. Having only 3 and then leaving it up to the writer allows for mislabeling and severely hindering discoverability if say 2 of 3 tags are invalid. And rotating highlights would be great!!
The thing that motivates me in regards to the Pareto Principle is that it’s almost like a self-fulfilling prophecy, much like the adage of “God helps those who help themselves”. By doing, I’m learning, and I’m learning by doing. So over time there’s a sense of exponential growth if one stays consistent enough. A book “Atomic Habits” goes into great detail about this and is a motivating read.
Hate-reading! Lol that is funny. Hopefully it’s not just bots but i doubt it. I think a lot of people are generally observers (like me), and that’s why long-form podcasts are so popular because it allows people to be the fly on the wall. However, what Substack offers is superior in my opinion because it opens the floor to discussion whereas podcasts in their traditional format don’t offer that to the audience.
Which is what fascinates me when applied to fiction and authors being capable of interacting with readers on that personal level. I imagine this new format will benefit those who adapt it in a useful way to get to know their fans, rather than simply the 10 seconds one might get at a book signing or event.
Ok, I think you've convince me to try the app... :-) And I totally agree that positive effort and learning build their own momentum. I like that mindset! I admit I've been one of those introverted lurkers who hangs back and doesn't participate in most forums, so I see where people might be coming from. I guess the question is: How to make these newsletters a space where people feel comfortable and welcome to join in? I'm not sure I have an answer, but I'll be thinking about it... because I agree, this is a great opportunity for readers and authors.
Before joining the Storyletter I was hesitant to join substack. I have been posting blogs for the past few years, mainly lore entries for the CORE, but since we have gotten to collaborate a bit more, you've inspired me to begin growing here.
I'm still figuring out how the formatting works here and but I'm sure with more practice I'll get the hang of it. But for sure, what I want is to collaborate, contribute, and continue to watch the Storyletter expand along with the CORE!
You’re doing a spectacular job on this platform, Winston. I enjoy this community you’re building and I think you’re doing a great job curating the content and being innovative in the way you’re developing the area you’ve carved out for yourself.
I personally prefer the app, because I’m finding it easy to use, and logging into it has become a new daily routine for me, whereas I didn’t go to the website except maybe once a week before I learned about the app. The app makes it really easy to like and comment on posts. And I enjoy the quality and thoughtfulness of the posts members of the community are contributing to your substack.
The email delivery issue I was having seems to have been resolved. I use gmail and it was simply a matter of teaching Google to not mark incoming emails from Substack as advertising. I did this by moving these emails out of the advertising folder and putting them back into the Inbox. Now I’m getting all the emails from both Substack and the Storyletter.
Thank you, Daniel!! I’m so glad you’re a part of this community. It really means a lot.
I like the app, too, for all the same reasons you mentioned. I think the new audio integration is a really huge upgrade. Have you seen that? The little headphones at the top right that indicate text-to-speech options. Only works on some posts for some reason.
I’m glad you were able to resolve the email issue. I think that has occurred on a much larger scale than I realize which is unfortunate for many of the earlier subscribers.
Thanks for commenting, and I hope to continue to cultivate an open space for creatives to communicate and grow!
I'm glad to hear you're feeling enthusiastic about your first year!
For myself, what I most like about the platform is that I don't have to do the heavy lifting of creating/transferring email lists, etc. That stuff happens organically and I can just publish and send to subscribers seamlessly. That was something I never mastered with the blog/contact form on my website, for example. Scheduling posts in advance is also really handy for me.
I like that it seems to be a relatively welcoming, open community that, from what I've seen in my (admittedly limited exposure), refrains from a lot of the unpleasantness out there on the rest of the internet and social media.
And, of course, I'm exposed to so many different writers and styles of writing here that I otherwise probably wouldn't encounter if I just waited for people to find my website or blog elsewhere. You never know what interesting things you might find when you step a little outside your everyday boundaries. Substack makes that a lot easier.
My least favorite thing is the lack of exposure on the wider site for fiction writers. The Leaderboard concept straight up sucks, and those tags are less than worthless. I wish there was a better way to organize and search fiction, especially serialized works. Fictionistas is great, but it's not ideal.
Also, I'd like to be able to customize my newsletter a little more.
But, those are pretty small quibbles. Mostly my "rut" is just due to the lack of people interested in my weird writing, which is fine and totally expected. Overall, I think it's going alright so far, considering I have pretty low expectations ;-)
Thanks, Jacquie! As always, I'm delighted with your insightful comments. I couldn't agree more in regards to the seamless nature enabled by the UI from the start of a post to the very end (along with scheduling). And it just keeps improving with each new update! They are really listening to their users, that's for certain.
Do you use the app at all? I'm hoping there are some general improvements made on there such as not being able to find 'sections' despite them being a prominent feature on my main page.
And I'm totally with you on the Discovery thing. I DO NOT LIKE IT. It only makes sense from a business perspective to put the biggest Substacks at the very top, but it makes discoverability for literally everyone else almost impossible. I think this will be remedied as time goes on and more "readers" start to use the app and website. I only have anecdotal evidence, but I'm under the impression that a majority of people simply don't know what Substack is. Everyone I talk to says, "I've heard of that, but what is it?"
I'd also like more customization. Even if it were a "paid" upgrade for more features, I'd probably do it. But at the same time, the simplicity of it forces me to focus on other things. Sometimes I forget that mailing lists have been around for a long time, so this type of program may be old news to other writers.
You'd be surprised at the amount of people that just don't like to comment, or since Substack might make them sign in again to "like" and "comment", they simply don't want to jump through hoops to do that but still like reading the emails. I totally understand where you are coming from though, and I'm astonished at the difficulty at converting subscriptions even among people I know in person. With each niche, there comes a niche audience. Our audiences are out there, we just need to find them somehow. I'm going to keep experimenting and let you know what works and what doesn't from my perspective.
Have you heard of the Pareto principle? I think about it often, and it's partly what drives my motivation. The more we work, the more likely we are to succeed. Sort of. It can be applied to a variety of things, which is probably why it's so compelling. Here's a link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle
I haven't tried the app yet. I had a bad experience with editing a post on my phone and finding that the changes had not saved when I resumed editing on my laptop. Since then I've resolved to only work in one space. It keeps things simpler and saner for me.
I wonder if part of the problem with discoverability is that writers are prompted to create their own tags/categories, and there seem to be duplicates of several of them. Perhaps if Substack offered a menu of categories to choose from there would be more consistency. Writers could suggest items to add, but they would need to be codified in the system in some way to avoid redundancy. Then, that entire index could also be made available on the Main page for readers to search rather than only the handful of leader categories they give now. Anyway, that's how I would design it...
And I don't disagree with the concept of a leaderboard necessarily, just that 1) i have no idea what their selection criteria are for determining who makes the list (more transparency would be nice) and 2) i've suggested a rotating list of randomly selected newsletters to spotlight new or unknown writers independent of their stats so we all get some much-needed exposure
I'd be interested in a paid upgrade for more features, but like you say, maybe less is more and forces me to focus on the important stuff...
I'm surprised also by how few people comment or "like" posts, though I can see they are being opened by quite a few! Either they don't enjoy the writing but can't be bothered to unsubscribe (but keep hate-reading every post ;-) or like you say, it's an inconvenience. I wish there was smoother process there as well.
I don't know much about the Pareto Principle, and I'm intrigued to hear how you are thinking about it in terms of writing, etc...
I'm confident we'll find our respective audiences. I don't expect mine to be huge, but it would be nice to reach a few readers somehow. It's always great chatting with you and hearing your ideas! Definitely keep me posted about your efforts and experiments :-)
The app is more reader-focused right now and doesn’t allow for editing posts in the app (which I find annoying), but I suppose one thing at a time. I do prefer reading in the app though as it allows for easier likes and commenting. However, like you said, writing is done on my computer.
I think you’re onto something with the tags. Having only 3 and then leaving it up to the writer allows for mislabeling and severely hindering discoverability if say 2 of 3 tags are invalid. And rotating highlights would be great!!
The thing that motivates me in regards to the Pareto Principle is that it’s almost like a self-fulfilling prophecy, much like the adage of “God helps those who help themselves”. By doing, I’m learning, and I’m learning by doing. So over time there’s a sense of exponential growth if one stays consistent enough. A book “Atomic Habits” goes into great detail about this and is a motivating read.
Hate-reading! Lol that is funny. Hopefully it’s not just bots but i doubt it. I think a lot of people are generally observers (like me), and that’s why long-form podcasts are so popular because it allows people to be the fly on the wall. However, what Substack offers is superior in my opinion because it opens the floor to discussion whereas podcasts in their traditional format don’t offer that to the audience.
Which is what fascinates me when applied to fiction and authors being capable of interacting with readers on that personal level. I imagine this new format will benefit those who adapt it in a useful way to get to know their fans, rather than simply the 10 seconds one might get at a book signing or event.
Ok, I think you've convince me to try the app... :-) And I totally agree that positive effort and learning build their own momentum. I like that mindset! I admit I've been one of those introverted lurkers who hangs back and doesn't participate in most forums, so I see where people might be coming from. I guess the question is: How to make these newsletters a space where people feel comfortable and welcome to join in? I'm not sure I have an answer, but I'll be thinking about it... because I agree, this is a great opportunity for readers and authors.
Love the miniature Schnauzer pic.
Haha thanks. Me too!
Before joining the Storyletter I was hesitant to join substack. I have been posting blogs for the past few years, mainly lore entries for the CORE, but since we have gotten to collaborate a bit more, you've inspired me to begin growing here.
I'm still figuring out how the formatting works here and but I'm sure with more practice I'll get the hang of it. But for sure, what I want is to collaborate, contribute, and continue to watch the Storyletter expand along with the CORE!
Didn’t see this until just now. I think you’ll do great on Substack. The new recommendation feature has been great for growth and networking.