Welcome, Nik. The transition to molecular biology to writing cookbooks had to have been an interesting one, but it kind of makes sense when you think about it. Understanding the chemistry involved in cooking, i.e. when to let something cool down, when to heat it up, how long to allow something to marinade... all of that involves chemistry.
Some of these sound interesting but I am curious about how many non-Best Selling Authors, non-University educated, non-establishment people who also moved from these platforms. I get that you want to promote the creators who are going to make money for Substack. Yet they don’t need your help.
Bulletin wasn't an open product (Meta recruited/selected all the publishers) so this cohort is easier for us to identify and share than the big sea of folks who join in streams from other platforms, but point heard!
This is becoming a consistent problem with Substack. You promote what’s best for Substack rather than what is best for the writers on the platform. If you focused on promoting more lesser known writers, you would create more brand loyalty to the platform and increase the revenue Substack brings in.
The writers you’ve promoted are people who can take their audiences elsewhere because they existed outside of Substack prior to being here. Lesser known writers are dependent on Substack to grow their audiences. By helping lesser known writers you decrease the chances of them leaving and increasing their willingness to continue generating revenue for Substack.
Hrm when I look at our last featured writers that doesn't feel true to me - https://on.substack.com/archive. But I hear you Andrew. We don't want to make people feel this way.
Started publishing online: I have been using Instagram since 2012, and I started a newsletter on Mailchimp in 2013.
Before Substack. I had been using Instagram since 2012, when I started my first business, Have Company—a zine and handmade goods shop—from a camper. I started writing a newsletter a year later, had written a few books, and had a Patreon. My mailing list had grown to about 8,000 subscribers before migrating to Substack.
Moving from Patreon to Substack. Professionally, I had a lot of success having readers pay $5-$11 a month on a membership model. I moved from Patreon to Substack with my 400 or so members from Patreon and 8,000 Mailchimp subscribers.
Started writing online: I began writing a blog on software engineering in 2015 called The Pragmatic Engineer. In 2019, I started collecting email addresses, sending out a once-a-month newsletter. It took two years for this mailing list to grow to 9,000 subscribers. This blog served as the basis of my Substack.
Twitter. I am a frequent user of Twitter, often sharing drafts of posts, as well. In August 2021, I had about 27,000 followers on the platform. This number grew to about 115,000 a year later. About 5% of visitors clicking through from Twitter became subscribers.
I’d spent a decade covering business for the Wall Street Journal’s NYC section. In July 2021, the paper folded the section, and that was the end of my gig. I wanted to keep writing about NYC, but I wanted to do it my way for a change, and I knew that no mainstream outlet would publish the stories I wanted to write. Substack was really the only option. It never occurred to me to not go paid. I’ve always been paid for my work, and I know I’m a good reporter and writer.
All of these people had established audiences prior to coming to Substack.
Yeah! I have migrated from Medium 2 years ago and I have never regretted it since then!
You can really feel that at Substack the interest of the writers and of the platform are one and the same.
I had written a short piece about it, at the time.
In short, "The alignment of interest between the company as distributor and its suppliers (writers) is key in the long run and generates strategic trade-offs"
I feel it is still valid today ;) Given that choosing on which platform to publish is a key strategic decision of every writer who's starting up (or shifting from a closing one)! Check it out -- > https://livmkk.substack.com/p/medium-newsletters-are-out-but-we
If you are from Bulletin and creating fiction, I would like to extend a warm welcome from Fictionistas, which is a Substack community helping fiction authors find success on the platform. We meet monthly via Zoom, write helpful articles and share our expertise and experiences with one another. Here are two posts that you may find helpful:
I've been wondering if there are sub-communities here that connect that way. I haven't tried fiction since, gulp, middle school. But as facts keep getting weirder, it's feeling ever more compelling to explore.
Hey Andy, we're a pretty lowkey group, and there are no official rules about how much fiction you write. We have several active members that write more essays than they do fiction. With 1000+ subscribers now, I doubt everyone that's a subscriber is writing fiction. You would be welcome to join a Zoom call, or just subscribe and linger in silence if you like 😁
Once I started writing a Substack I felt certain this was the platform that would win out in the end. Facebook was never about providing a good experience for either the writer or the readers.
That's almost entirely what Substack is about. How refreshing that the good guys win one for a change!
I hope all of you enjoy being on Substack. I think that one of the very best things about Substack that made it stand out from the offerings of other companies like Twitter or Facebook is that the only thing Substack does is handle newsletters and facilitate subscriptions to those newsletters. It's not a side hustle. For them, it's their only hustle.
It's a small difference, but I think as you spend more time here you'll see that it's their guiding star. It's the impetus behind their every decision and feature set that they consider or roll out. And that difference in focus really does have a direct impact on what it's like to use the platform. I believe you've all made a great decision. Welcome!
Welcome!
I am very excited to join the Substack community!
Welcome Nik, we're glad you are here!
Welcome, Nik. The transition to molecular biology to writing cookbooks had to have been an interesting one, but it kind of makes sense when you think about it. Understanding the chemistry involved in cooking, i.e. when to let something cool down, when to heat it up, how long to allow something to marinade... all of that involves chemistry.
I hope you enjoy it here.
Thank you, John! It's just like being in a lab, just a lot more tastier :)
So happy to find you here! I’m a big fan of yours!
It is so nice to meet you here!
Some of these sound interesting but I am curious about how many non-Best Selling Authors, non-University educated, non-establishment people who also moved from these platforms. I get that you want to promote the creators who are going to make money for Substack. Yet they don’t need your help.
+1
Would love to hear more about lesser known writers making the jump.
Bulletin wasn't an open product (Meta recruited/selected all the publishers) so this cohort is easier for us to identify and share than the big sea of folks who join in streams from other platforms, but point heard!
This is becoming a consistent problem with Substack. You promote what’s best for Substack rather than what is best for the writers on the platform. If you focused on promoting more lesser known writers, you would create more brand loyalty to the platform and increase the revenue Substack brings in.
The writers you’ve promoted are people who can take their audiences elsewhere because they existed outside of Substack prior to being here. Lesser known writers are dependent on Substack to grow their audiences. By helping lesser known writers you decrease the chances of them leaving and increasing their willingness to continue generating revenue for Substack.
Hrm when I look at our last featured writers that doesn't feel true to me - https://on.substack.com/archive. But I hear you Andrew. We don't want to make people feel this way.
From your previous Grow pieces:
https://on.substack.com/p/grow-series-22-marlee-grace
Started publishing online: I have been using Instagram since 2012, and I started a newsletter on Mailchimp in 2013.
Before Substack. I had been using Instagram since 2012, when I started my first business, Have Company—a zine and handmade goods shop—from a camper. I started writing a newsletter a year later, had written a few books, and had a Patreon. My mailing list had grown to about 8,000 subscribers before migrating to Substack.
Moving from Patreon to Substack. Professionally, I had a lot of success having readers pay $5-$11 a month on a membership model. I moved from Patreon to Substack with my 400 or so members from Patreon and 8,000 Mailchimp subscribers.
https://on.substack.com/p/grow-series-21-gergely-orosz
Started writing online: I began writing a blog on software engineering in 2015 called The Pragmatic Engineer. In 2019, I started collecting email addresses, sending out a once-a-month newsletter. It took two years for this mailing list to grow to 9,000 subscribers. This blog served as the basis of my Substack.
Twitter. I am a frequent user of Twitter, often sharing drafts of posts, as well. In August 2021, I had about 27,000 followers on the platform. This number grew to about 115,000 a year later. About 5% of visitors clicking through from Twitter became subscribers.
https://on.substack.com/p/grow-series-20-anne-kadet
Why did you start on Substack?
I’d spent a decade covering business for the Wall Street Journal’s NYC section. In July 2021, the paper folded the section, and that was the end of my gig. I wanted to keep writing about NYC, but I wanted to do it my way for a change, and I knew that no mainstream outlet would publish the stories I wanted to write. Substack was really the only option. It never occurred to me to not go paid. I’ve always been paid for my work, and I know I’m a good reporter and writer.
All of these people had established audiences prior to coming to Substack.
Thanks Bailey!
^
Valid point 🫰
Welcome y’all!!! Very glad to have you!
Yeah! I have migrated from Medium 2 years ago and I have never regretted it since then!
You can really feel that at Substack the interest of the writers and of the platform are one and the same.
I had written a short piece about it, at the time.
In short, "The alignment of interest between the company as distributor and its suppliers (writers) is key in the long run and generates strategic trade-offs"
I feel it is still valid today ;) Given that choosing on which platform to publish is a key strategic decision of every writer who's starting up (or shifting from a closing one)! Check it out -- > https://livmkk.substack.com/p/medium-newsletters-are-out-but-we
Wow! Great job substack team in finding a home for all these great writers.
So exciting to see all these great new writers on Subtack!
We joined 4 weeks ago and have loved our experience so far.
https://joinmodulo.substack.com/
If you are from Bulletin and creating fiction, I would like to extend a warm welcome from Fictionistas, which is a Substack community helping fiction authors find success on the platform. We meet monthly via Zoom, write helpful articles and share our expertise and experiences with one another. Here are two posts that you may find helpful:
How I can make a living from my newsletter:
https://fictionistas.substack.com/p/how-i-can-make-a-living-from-my-newsletter
Short Story Tips from the Masters:
https://fictionistas.substack.com/p/short-story-tips-from-the-masters
Anyone is welcome to subscribe and it's free.
I've been wondering if there are sub-communities here that connect that way. I haven't tried fiction since, gulp, middle school. But as facts keep getting weirder, it's feeling ever more compelling to explore.
Hey Andy, we're a pretty lowkey group, and there are no official rules about how much fiction you write. We have several active members that write more essays than they do fiction. With 1000+ subscribers now, I doubt everyone that's a subscriber is writing fiction. You would be welcome to join a Zoom call, or just subscribe and linger in silence if you like 😁
What a crew! Welcome!
Welcome aboard! ♥️
Once I started writing a Substack I felt certain this was the platform that would win out in the end. Facebook was never about providing a good experience for either the writer or the readers.
That's almost entirely what Substack is about. How refreshing that the good guys win one for a change!
Welcome, everyone :)
I hope all of you enjoy being on Substack. I think that one of the very best things about Substack that made it stand out from the offerings of other companies like Twitter or Facebook is that the only thing Substack does is handle newsletters and facilitate subscriptions to those newsletters. It's not a side hustle. For them, it's their only hustle.
It's a small difference, but I think as you spend more time here you'll see that it's their guiding star. It's the impetus behind their every decision and feature set that they consider or roll out. And that difference in focus really does have a direct impact on what it's like to use the platform. I believe you've all made a great decision. Welcome!
Wow some great writers here!! So excited to have them on Substack
The more the merrier, welcome to all of you. I have been treated well here and educated at the same time.
Please create a mobile writing app.