Substack For Beginners

Look, nothing is perfect. And Substack is no exception. They’ve apparently been doing some possibly shady and annoying stuff lately, probably because, you know, they’re trying to turn a profit and a lot of us are just writing our free newsletters, not making them any revenue. (Hey, that’s the platform they created!)

Anyway, you can read about some of Substack’s more annoying policies elsewhere. But personally, I still think the pros greatly outweigh the cons. (For one, unlike other social media sites, you can download your subscriber list and take them with you elsewhere if need-be!) And Substack is still my favorite place to be on the Internet.

I have made friends on Substack. I have found podcast guests on Substack. (Heck, I started my podcast The Long Road to Publishing because people on Substack were so enthusiastic about it.) I have lots of good things to say about this platform. And I say many of them in this talk: Substack for Beginners: How to Find Readers and a Writing Community on Substack, which I gave for the first time ever at the recent online Find Your Readers Summit.

Please note: I am not a Substack expert. I don't work for them and if you are having tech issues or a specific problem, contact them directly. However, I am an avid user and fan of Substack. I have been on the platform for a few years, and I’ve learned what works for me, and what works for others. In fact, recently

Leigh Stein

interviewed Amran Gowani, and he talks about befriending published authors on Substack and how that helped him in his querying journey. So, it’s not just me: Substack is a great place to find readers and a supportive writing community.

Anyway, I have lots of great tips and pieces of practical advice in the video. The outline of what I cover is below. Enjoy!