This isn't *really* about Substack it's about writers and writing and platforms that keep letting writers down time after time because damn it gets tiring
Yup! Because you're so reliably consistently you. But you make a good point. Andrew Verbeek is that way. I love his little notes with nature clips, but they are 200% tied into what he writes about. Interesting thing to think about
I think they are trying to be all things to all people (ie a good platform writing, an outlet for journalism, a good video platform for TikTok and IG refugees, etc.). The problem is that's an incredibly difficult needle to thread.
I am new so can't really comment on how the place works. I write because I am compelled to. Not all the time but when the muse grabs me it is all or nothing. It is lovely to get a comment or two and a free sub here or there but they are not really the motivation for writing. I have to say what I have to say and the gods will decide who sees it.
Having written stories for children, magazines, and adult magazines in the past. I know that those systems worked because they weren’t overwhelmed by the number of writers like we have today. Sure there was more than they could easily deal with but not tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands as they have today. Today’s platforms are not built to succeed with the number of writers that are trying to make it.
I think AI is a big part of the problem. Medium is over half AI now. Lots here too, although they don't directly reach into our pockets in the same way. But yeah, I agree with you on the sheer volume
AI. @&!?$@. Hate how it’s applied to the Arts. Writers using AI to earn money and claiming they’re writing, is like burglars stealing and fencing the goods and claiming to all — Hey I make a good living.
First of all, if Medium wants more writers, it has only to stop driving us away. We can all name a bunch of writers whose work we really enjoyed who have either left Medium or have cut down how often they post so much that they may as well have out-right left. The hostility that platform has toward some top writers is rather surprising. I don't think Medium really likes writers anymore. I think they like tech people who post information. That's mostly what's trending on any given day.
As for Substack, I'm OK-ish with all the non-writing things they offer now. It doesn't mean I have to use all of them, although I'm babu-stepping myself in a few things. But I want to concentrate on WRITING.
On Medium -- yeah. Just stop driving people away. Except AI. Drive that away. lol.
On Substack, I'm okay with all the stuff they offer now, too. People like it. But damn, let us find actual writers. There's literally nowhere I can find posts anymore except for what people restack which seems really lacking.
The one I really want to finish, because I want to find out what happens next, is called The Mother. It takes place in the near future and if there's another book out there like it, I've not seen it.
I am pretty new to Substack so I can't really comment on the progression of changes you have seen.
I am still finding people I haven't read before as I scan done through the notes. What is really helpful is when someone restacks someone they read in their note.
It must be discouraging for you and others that have been writing on various platforms.
We're all looking for that holy grail and it keeps slipping away.💙💛💙
Restacks are def. how I find things to read. The tagging here (as cited in your other articles) leaves a few things to be desired.
When you sign up, you're essentially told you need to bring in a bunch of people from your other social media to even get going. And if you don't have those other people, from other sites, you're not going to get anywhere very quickly. Anyone coming into Substack and not thinking of it as a way to send a newsletter to the people they already know will end up disheartened by the pace of "growth" -- and it's largely due to visibility.
You have to start interacting with everybody and their mother on Substack. For anyone doing it as a side gig, the time commitment seems impossible -- or at least impossibly slow. Nevermind, then, that you're also battling to make your content more visually appealing (again referencing some of your prior articles) ON TOP OF actually writing something good/worthwhile. All of which distracts from the time spent doing the writing itself.
Though, I've heard the same thing from artists on Instagram having to make videos and posts instead of just making art. I think it's endemic of all content websites. How do you even get around that when algorithms decide what you see/what's to be prioritized?
Anyway, I'm glad for restacks. That's how I found you to begin with!
Rebecca, I’m experiencing this. “Anyone coming into Substack and not thinking of it as a way to send a newsletter to the people they already know will end up disheartened by the pace of "growth" -- and it's largely due to visibility.” I have not advertised my Substack to anyone outside of Substack and my growth is slow. I’m not sure I’m ready for everybody in my non-Substack life to be reading my personal posts. Which is ironic since my Substack is called Write Out of Hiding and the framing is around no longer keeping family secrets.
I have no idea how to figure out the Substack algorithms!
Linda's posts are really helpful for navigating some of the bits. I've definitely found that the Notes feature (and likes/comments on Notes) are completely independent of the subscriber count on your publication. My Notes feed is full of people with 250 likes on arbitrary aphorisms and affirmations and less than 40 subscribers (often because their actual content is jumbled word garbage, but their pillow quotes Notes really seem to resonate...)
That's quite a commentary about what and how we choose to interact with content.... We're pretty stingy with who we will give our time to, at least when it's written in long format. And I hold true to that myself -- so certainly can't throw any blame!
Reposting your own work to your Notes (which feels [to use the parlance of our times] "cringe") and self-promoting + writing thoughtful comments on other people's work seem to be -- to me -- the best chances at visibility. But that thoughtful comments bit... that's back to what I said in my original reply about the time commitment. You've really gotta throw your time in here if you want an audience.
I agree about the time commitment 100%! For me, it's also attention and the mental bandwidth to engage, as I tend to get overwhelmed easily when there's so much choice. There is a lot of good writing of interest on Substack (and a lot that isn't so great) – I just can't get to it all! Yet I know engagement is key.
I had never quite thought of notes versus posts/subscribers in the way you describe – thank you!
Yeah. You're not wrong, Joy. Makes me want to tell them -- help writers make money, trust me the investors will be happy. No one is paying to read notes and engagement on Notes isn't dollars in the bank.
It is all driven by their faulty 10% of paid subscribers model. Maybe adding the Medium model of $5 a month subscriptions will be an incentive to change the current policy.
The tricky part there is that this isn't really about turning a profit. We only wish it were. Then the company would be doing everything they could to make money which means making it easier for the writers money.
This is about control. All social media platforms are operated at the top by intelligence agencies. The name of the game is control. They get government subsidies made out of the money they stole from us. The subsidies are dispersed in exchange for the platforms silencing and censoring and controlling.
true. and yes the notes can feel like i’m back on insta…. but also as a writer i enjoy the super easy to use podcast extension to talk about creativity. talking is a part of writing. and it feels a particular way generating it on a platform that is about writing. i could generate and post into substack podcast but instead i generate here and broadcast into apple.
It's funny, when I was choosing at the end of last year between Substack and Ghost, I ALMOST went with Substack and then quickly realized it looked and acted like just another social media page. I'm so tired of that. Now, Ghost doesn't have this interaction marketplace, it's just hosting the newsletters, so I'm just using existing socials to drive traffic to it. The main point: as a newer person to it, looking to avoid this exact problem, it didn't take long before I saw it for what it was. I do subscribe to some Substack newsletters (like yours!), but I just read them from email. It's too bad, I know I'm missing it, but I just can't handled another Instagram....
Yeah. I actually do enjoy notes, just that I would really like to find people via their writing a little easier. How are you doing driving traffic to Ghost? It feels like it might be hard to get people to platform jump, but I haven't tried it so I don't know.
Medium HAD good writers, but they ran them all away. I swear, I need to rip off the band-aid and delete my account. Nobody sees my work now, and $0.13 an article isn't worth messing with.
On Substack, I engage on Notes and find like-minded people. Chances are, I'll enjoy their writing, and I most often do. It is a shame they changed the category page.
I've given up ever having much success as a writer, or even being properly supported by a platform. It's just not going to happen. At least, not for long.
I still have hope Medium will get it together, but time will tell I guess. I'm sad they changed the post feed to a notes feed here, too. But with all the platforms, I think the bigger problem is going to be AI if it's not already.
It's driving me nuts. I can't find new writers either, not on my own, anyway. I used to love scrolling for gems.
Today I find new writers through the ones I subscribe to, and go down their rabbit hole of recommendations.
I don't like Notes at all. I really try to engage and show others support but it's getting tough on the Note side of things. Don't hate me. I love X for "notes." I scroll for bird images, connect with various interests but wading through Trump stuff is exhausting.
I still find good writers on Medium, obscure but there are still gems to be found if I dive deep enough.
And I'm not one for tooting my own horn so I don't share my work to other platforms, so I'm happy that others do so for me.
As a reader I don't have an answer.
I wish Substack would not put so much emphasis on Notes. I spend a lot of time blocking Trump Haters, not because I like him, but because it triggers anger in me. It takes away my attention for the topic at hand.
I notice many who still like to add a dig or two inside their posts when the topic has nothing to do with politics or Trump. They get unsubscribed. I'm hanging in with three (two I pay) who still can't seem to let it go, but not sure for how much longer.
Anyway, you're spot on with this post. And I'm sorry for the rant. I did exactly what I avoid reading. I'll put myself in time out for the next week.
I do use Notes some, but boy did you hit on an issue. There is so much politics in Notes and wading through the Trump stuff is exhausting. It really is. No need to apologize for the rant, I kind of did the same lol
All your points are excellent. I am not embarrassed to admit i am searching for new readers. Writers, too, of course. I love finding quality writing here or anywhere, for that matter. Notes is a struggle. Getting traction, which really means finding readers, has been harder on Substack than I anticipated it would be. I'll keep plugging away, though.
Boy. You and lots of people Nancy. I don't even mind notes, although the political Notes get a little much sometimes. But yeah, it's hard and I think changing the feed from posts to notes maybe made that harder.
Yup! Because you're so reliably consistently you. But you make a good point. Andrew Verbeek is that way. I love his little notes with nature clips, but they are 200% tied into what he writes about. Interesting thing to think about
I hadn't realized they'd switched from links to articles to notes on those pages. Sigh...
Right? Sigh, indeed
I totally agree, the slow slide to notes and videos and podcasts. I've noticed and thought the same thing
Glad it's not just me
The videos and podcasts and the volume of notes...I couldn't do all of this if I was paid. I want to read good stories. Good essays. Good memoir.
Just something to read.
I think they are trying to be all things to all people (ie a good platform writing, an outlet for journalism, a good video platform for TikTok and IG refugees, etc.). The problem is that's an incredibly difficult needle to thread.
It is a difficult needle to thread, but having nowhere we can find current posts might be missing the needle entirely.
You have been one of my guides on both platforms (Medium and Substack) -
Thank you Patricia. :)
I am new so can't really comment on how the place works. I write because I am compelled to. Not all the time but when the muse grabs me it is all or nothing. It is lovely to get a comment or two and a free sub here or there but they are not really the motivation for writing. I have to say what I have to say and the gods will decide who sees it.
I am glad I found your writing though.
Someone please wake the gods, lol. And thank you for the last sentence, Paul :)
Having written stories for children, magazines, and adult magazines in the past. I know that those systems worked because they weren’t overwhelmed by the number of writers like we have today. Sure there was more than they could easily deal with but not tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands as they have today. Today’s platforms are not built to succeed with the number of writers that are trying to make it.
I think AI is a big part of the problem. Medium is over half AI now. Lots here too, although they don't directly reach into our pockets in the same way. But yeah, I agree with you on the sheer volume
That would seem to me to be a good reason to lean in hard on memoir .... but nope.
AI. @&!?$@. Hate how it’s applied to the Arts. Writers using AI to earn money and claiming they’re writing, is like burglars stealing and fencing the goods and claiming to all — Hey I make a good living.
This is all very depressing.
First of all, if Medium wants more writers, it has only to stop driving us away. We can all name a bunch of writers whose work we really enjoyed who have either left Medium or have cut down how often they post so much that they may as well have out-right left. The hostility that platform has toward some top writers is rather surprising. I don't think Medium really likes writers anymore. I think they like tech people who post information. That's mostly what's trending on any given day.
As for Substack, I'm OK-ish with all the non-writing things they offer now. It doesn't mean I have to use all of them, although I'm babu-stepping myself in a few things. But I want to concentrate on WRITING.
I'm shifting toward writing more books, I think.
On Medium -- yeah. Just stop driving people away. Except AI. Drive that away. lol.
On Substack, I'm okay with all the stuff they offer now, too. People like it. But damn, let us find actual writers. There's literally nowhere I can find posts anymore except for what people restack which seems really lacking.
You working on another new book?
I am working a few :)
The one I really want to finish, because I want to find out what happens next, is called The Mother. It takes place in the near future and if there's another book out there like it, I've not seen it.
It's been dispiriting to see some of what gets real traction on Medium now.
Yes, because the best writers who made it a good place abandoned it.
If you drive the chefs out of your restaurant, don’t be surprised if there’s not much on the menu and the foodies stop coming.
I am pretty new to Substack so I can't really comment on the progression of changes you have seen.
I am still finding people I haven't read before as I scan done through the notes. What is really helpful is when someone restacks someone they read in their note.
It must be discouraging for you and others that have been writing on various platforms.
We're all looking for that holy grail and it keeps slipping away.💙💛💙
I agree, Nancy. Restacks are about the only way I find new writers anymore, too.
Restacks are def. how I find things to read. The tagging here (as cited in your other articles) leaves a few things to be desired.
When you sign up, you're essentially told you need to bring in a bunch of people from your other social media to even get going. And if you don't have those other people, from other sites, you're not going to get anywhere very quickly. Anyone coming into Substack and not thinking of it as a way to send a newsletter to the people they already know will end up disheartened by the pace of "growth" -- and it's largely due to visibility.
You have to start interacting with everybody and their mother on Substack. For anyone doing it as a side gig, the time commitment seems impossible -- or at least impossibly slow. Nevermind, then, that you're also battling to make your content more visually appealing (again referencing some of your prior articles) ON TOP OF actually writing something good/worthwhile. All of which distracts from the time spent doing the writing itself.
Though, I've heard the same thing from artists on Instagram having to make videos and posts instead of just making art. I think it's endemic of all content websites. How do you even get around that when algorithms decide what you see/what's to be prioritized?
Anyway, I'm glad for restacks. That's how I found you to begin with!
Rebecca, I’m experiencing this. “Anyone coming into Substack and not thinking of it as a way to send a newsletter to the people they already know will end up disheartened by the pace of "growth" -- and it's largely due to visibility.” I have not advertised my Substack to anyone outside of Substack and my growth is slow. I’m not sure I’m ready for everybody in my non-Substack life to be reading my personal posts. Which is ironic since my Substack is called Write Out of Hiding and the framing is around no longer keeping family secrets.
I have no idea how to figure out the Substack algorithms!
Linda's posts are really helpful for navigating some of the bits. I've definitely found that the Notes feature (and likes/comments on Notes) are completely independent of the subscriber count on your publication. My Notes feed is full of people with 250 likes on arbitrary aphorisms and affirmations and less than 40 subscribers (often because their actual content is jumbled word garbage, but their pillow quotes Notes really seem to resonate...)
That's quite a commentary about what and how we choose to interact with content.... We're pretty stingy with who we will give our time to, at least when it's written in long format. And I hold true to that myself -- so certainly can't throw any blame!
Reposting your own work to your Notes (which feels [to use the parlance of our times] "cringe") and self-promoting + writing thoughtful comments on other people's work seem to be -- to me -- the best chances at visibility. But that thoughtful comments bit... that's back to what I said in my original reply about the time commitment. You've really gotta throw your time in here if you want an audience.
I agree about the time commitment 100%! For me, it's also attention and the mental bandwidth to engage, as I tend to get overwhelmed easily when there's so much choice. There is a lot of good writing of interest on Substack (and a lot that isn't so great) – I just can't get to it all! Yet I know engagement is key.
I had never quite thought of notes versus posts/subscribers in the way you describe – thank you!
It’s driven by them trying to find more ways to monetize in order to impress their VC investors. Same as most platforms.
Yeah. You're not wrong, Joy. Makes me want to tell them -- help writers make money, trust me the investors will be happy. No one is paying to read notes and engagement on Notes isn't dollars in the bank.
It is all driven by their faulty 10% of paid subscribers model. Maybe adding the Medium model of $5 a month subscriptions will be an incentive to change the current policy.
The tricky part there is that this isn't really about turning a profit. We only wish it were. Then the company would be doing everything they could to make money which means making it easier for the writers money.
This is about control. All social media platforms are operated at the top by intelligence agencies. The name of the game is control. They get government subsidies made out of the money they stole from us. The subsidies are dispersed in exchange for the platforms silencing and censoring and controlling.
true. and yes the notes can feel like i’m back on insta…. but also as a writer i enjoy the super easy to use podcast extension to talk about creativity. talking is a part of writing. and it feels a particular way generating it on a platform that is about writing. i could generate and post into substack podcast but instead i generate here and broadcast into apple.
There's so many different features here, and that's a good thing for sure. That's cool you can broadcast into apple.
right?
It's funny, when I was choosing at the end of last year between Substack and Ghost, I ALMOST went with Substack and then quickly realized it looked and acted like just another social media page. I'm so tired of that. Now, Ghost doesn't have this interaction marketplace, it's just hosting the newsletters, so I'm just using existing socials to drive traffic to it. The main point: as a newer person to it, looking to avoid this exact problem, it didn't take long before I saw it for what it was. I do subscribe to some Substack newsletters (like yours!), but I just read them from email. It's too bad, I know I'm missing it, but I just can't handled another Instagram....
Yeah. I actually do enjoy notes, just that I would really like to find people via their writing a little easier. How are you doing driving traffic to Ghost? It feels like it might be hard to get people to platform jump, but I haven't tried it so I don't know.
Medium HAD good writers, but they ran them all away. I swear, I need to rip off the band-aid and delete my account. Nobody sees my work now, and $0.13 an article isn't worth messing with.
On Substack, I engage on Notes and find like-minded people. Chances are, I'll enjoy their writing, and I most often do. It is a shame they changed the category page.
I've given up ever having much success as a writer, or even being properly supported by a platform. It's just not going to happen. At least, not for long.
I still have hope Medium will get it together, but time will tell I guess. I'm sad they changed the post feed to a notes feed here, too. But with all the platforms, I think the bigger problem is going to be AI if it's not already.
It's driving me nuts. I can't find new writers either, not on my own, anyway. I used to love scrolling for gems.
Today I find new writers through the ones I subscribe to, and go down their rabbit hole of recommendations.
I don't like Notes at all. I really try to engage and show others support but it's getting tough on the Note side of things. Don't hate me. I love X for "notes." I scroll for bird images, connect with various interests but wading through Trump stuff is exhausting.
I still find good writers on Medium, obscure but there are still gems to be found if I dive deep enough.
And I'm not one for tooting my own horn so I don't share my work to other platforms, so I'm happy that others do so for me.
As a reader I don't have an answer.
I wish Substack would not put so much emphasis on Notes. I spend a lot of time blocking Trump Haters, not because I like him, but because it triggers anger in me. It takes away my attention for the topic at hand.
I notice many who still like to add a dig or two inside their posts when the topic has nothing to do with politics or Trump. They get unsubscribed. I'm hanging in with three (two I pay) who still can't seem to let it go, but not sure for how much longer.
Anyway, you're spot on with this post. And I'm sorry for the rant. I did exactly what I avoid reading. I'll put myself in time out for the next week.
I do use Notes some, but boy did you hit on an issue. There is so much politics in Notes and wading through the Trump stuff is exhausting. It really is. No need to apologize for the rant, I kind of did the same lol
All your points are excellent. I am not embarrassed to admit i am searching for new readers. Writers, too, of course. I love finding quality writing here or anywhere, for that matter. Notes is a struggle. Getting traction, which really means finding readers, has been harder on Substack than I anticipated it would be. I'll keep plugging away, though.
Boy. You and lots of people Nancy. I don't even mind notes, although the political Notes get a little much sometimes. But yeah, it's hard and I think changing the feed from posts to notes maybe made that harder.
I find new writers by looking at what my readers read. What they subscribe to. If not, it’d be the stupid algorithm at work, yet again.
I often check out people who comment on my posts. Feels like a nice thing to do and I've found a lot of people to read that way. :)
Me too! Your writing is wonderful! Love your work.