It’s a random number to celebrate, but since I made my debut on Substack last November, I’ve published nineteen newsletters. I’ve garnered a handful of real subscribers, not just friends and family, which is, quite frankly, a miracle. And I’ve learnt a lot about Substack.
Lesson One: do your research before you put finger to keyboard. Dazzled by the promise of earning easy money for writing a few hundred words every week, I imagined that after reading my newsletters, paid subscribers would tumble from the sky like falling leaves. Of course, I wasn’t a complete idiot so I started with free subscriptions, planning to wait till I had my first hundred subscribers before putting in a paywall. I reckoned I would meet that target by, I don’t know, about now. Once I’d gone paid, my subscribers would rise exponentially, just like the graphs put out by Substack, and my name would be bandied about the universe of Substackery until I was known to one and all.
As you may guess, that didn’t happen. I asked friends to share and tweet and do whatever people have to do to get noticed and I’m grateful to all those who did. Result? No new subscribers. Looking back, in a good week a newsletter gets between 40-60 views and generates no new subscriptions. In a bad week – don’t go there. How do I know this? Because of my Substack dashboard, which shows me in graphs and numbers how (badly) I’m doing. At the end of the month they summarise. In April, my newsletter read count went down by one.
Lesson Two: to make waves on Substack, it helps if you already have a reputation. After writing my first few newsletters, I read multiple articles, including Substack’s, on how to grow your Substack, because that’s what I wanted to do. Most started by urging me to import my existing followers. Er, what existing followers? So I reactivated my Blue Bird account and started putting out more birdsong, following everyone and replying to anyone (I exaggerate for comic effect but only slightly), occasionally dropping in a link to my latest newsletter. Result? No new subscribers.
Lesson Three: it also helps if you have something unique to offer. A particular expertise, an idiosyncratic viewpoint, exceptional relatability. I have pictures of cats, but I suspect that’s not enough. Time to regroup.
Lesson Four: subscribe to and comment on other people’s newsletters because that’s what Substack is for. I did gain a few more subscribers this way (THANK YOU SO MUCH!) and for me this has been the most successful way of growing my Substack (does growing your Substack sound rude or is it just me?). Just to make it clear, I subscribed because I really enjoyed the writer’s newsletter and commented because I had something I wanted to say, not as a cynical ploy to get subscribers. In fact, I would subscribe to and comment on even more newsletters but with thousands upon thousands of them, how would I ever get time to watch tennis? (See the sneaky way I linked to a previous newsletter? Apparently that’s a good way of getting new subscribers to look at your archives. Ooh, that sounds rude too. I’ve come over all Miranda.[1])
And now there’s Notes, a kind of high quality Blue Bird designed for more informal exchanges, promotion of newsletters that people have enjoyed and a bit of self-promotion, but with far fewer cute kitten pictures (shame). I haven’t quite got the hang of Notes yet, but maybe that’s because none of us has.
But the most important lesson I’ve learnt – here comes the cheesy bit – is that it’s not just about the numbers or the money (though both are welcome). It’s about being given an opportunity to write without having to jump through editorial hoops. And there’s something egalitarian about being in the same virtual space as the most unexpected people. Erin Brockovich (yes, she’s real, no, she is not Julia Roberts). Caroline Criado Perez. Margaret Atwood. They get many more subscribers than me because they’re well-known (see Lesson Two). Does that matter to me? Yes and no, but on reflection, mostly no. I direct you to Thoughts on Writing #1.
So I’m still a fan of Substack, even though I’m not and never will be the most ‘successful’ writer on it. A caveat, though: I won’t go into details, but Substack needs to find a way to weed out unsavoury newsletters that promote unsavoury ideas. The founders say they’re against censorship, but there’s a difference between censorship and giving people a platform to promote racism and conspiracy theories. I do hope they reconsider. It would be sad to see this magnificent writerly adventure’s reputation tarnished by a few rotten eggs. Sorry for mixing my metaphors.
[1] Miranda, a BBC comedy show first broadcast in 2009 and always available to watch somewhere, and quite right too.
But what is Bluebird???
I started at about the same time as you (December). Knowing how reluctant I am to subscribe (for $) to posts, I decided to keep it free. I read a lot of substances and if I had to pay for all I'd break my budget, lol. But, but... I love the interaction and the freedom. The quality of conversations in here is miles above the rest of social media, and, for me, posting every other Thursday feels like a good rhythm. Keep at it, Abby!