Live video scheduling, new categories, and music mode
Bulletin: News, resources, and community updates
Welcome to the latest edition of the Substack Bulletin, where publishers get a roundup of the latest news, resources, and events, all in one place. Today, we’re highlighting live video scheduling, updated categories, and a new tool that helps you choose the title your audience is most likely to open.
We’re always striving to improve this series, and value your input. Please share any feedback or suggestions in the comments.
News
Live video scheduling: Writers and creators using the iOS app can now schedule their streams in advance, making it easier to build anticipation and boost turnout. Scheduling a live video generates an RSVP link that prompts subscribers to add the event to their calendar and can be shared via Notes, posts, and social media. Ahead of the livestream, automated email and in-app reminders ensure that your audience won’t miss a moment. Learn more about scheduling a live video in the help center.
Live video stats: Creators who publish the full recording of their livestreams can now see stats for their videos. These stats combine data from both the live session and the posted recording. You’ll be able to track video watch time, views, engagement, revenue, and new subscribers. Learn more about live video stats in the help center.
New categories: We’ve added new subcategories for our most popular topics. Under Culture, for example, you can now see topics like Movies & TV, Pop Culture, Video Games, and more. To check it out, go to your settings, click “Manage Interests,” and choose the subcategories you want to explore. This feature is currently available on web and the iOS app, with Android support coming soon.
New leaderboard views: We’ve expanded leaderboards in the Substack app to make it easier to discover even more voices across the platform. You can access leaderboards through the category tabs at the top of the Notes feed or by clicking on a publisher’s ranking from their profile.
The Top Bestseller view highlights the highest-earning publications, while the Rising view and the New Bestseller tab spotlight fast-growing publications, including those that became Bestsellers in the past 30 days. Learn more about leaderboards in the help center.
Publisher stats in the app: Accessible from your profile page in the app, these stats provide a real-time snapshot of overall performance. Stats for subscriber growth, total revenue, and post views from the past 30 days make it easier to understand what’s working and where to focus. Soon, we’ll also introduce a metric to show how close you are to earning your first (or next) Bestseller badge. Learn more about in-app publisher stats in the help center.
Music mode: Creators can now enable “music mode” during livestreams on iOS to disable audio processing and noise cancellation, preserving the original sound of their live video. To activate it, start a livestream, tap the music note icon on the right side of the screen, click “Change Wide Spectrum,” and then select “Wide Spectrum” from the pop-up window. Learn more about music mode in the help center.
App redesigns: We’ve rolled out exciting improvements and new controls in the Substack app. Here’s an overview of the latest updates.
Subscriptions tab: Keeping up with your subscriptions is the core function of the Substack app, and we’ve made it even easier. The “Inbox” tab is now called “Subscriptions,” and we’ve introduced a new grid-style view with larger title cards to make browsing posts more intuitive. You can now choose to view posts chronologically or sort by priority within your subscriptions to ensure you never miss an update from your favorite publishers. Filters at the top let you quickly view audio and video posts, content from paid subscriptions, saved posts, and recently viewed items.
Media tab: Discovery is equally important, especially for long-form content like podcasts and interviews, where surfacing key moments can be a challenge. To address this, we’ve redesigned the media tab into a scrollable feed that makes exploring multimedia content easier and more engaging. This update helps subscribers discover content they care about while giving creators more opportunities to grow their audiences. If a clip catches your interest, a prominent button lets you dive into the full post. We’ve also added a “Subscribe” button to help you stay connected to creators whose work resonates. For now, the feed features short clips from video posts, with long-form video and podcast previews coming soon
Resources
Live Video Scheduling Q&A: Following the launch of live video scheduling, Substack product manager Zach Taylor will be hosting a live Q&A on Friday, April 4, at 10 a.m. PT to walk through the new feature, share best practices, and answer questions. RSVP to the livestream and add it to your calendar.
Live Video Shows Masterclass: In case you missed it, we hosted a virtual masterclass covering best practices and key features for launching your own live show. You can view the full recording at the bottom of our Live Video Shows Guide.
Legal support for creators: We've partnered with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) to protect publishers who are targeted by the government for the content of their work. Learn more about how Substack provides legal support to writers, and apply via the Substack Defender Program.
Chatbot question of the week: I’d like to move previous posts from another platform to my Substack. Is that possible?
Substack supports importing content from various platforms, including Medium, Ghost, WordPress, Mailchimp, Beehiiv, SeekingAlpha, Tumblr, and Blogspot. To import your posts: Log into your account and go to Settings. Click Import/Export in the left navigation. Click “Import posts.” Paste your blog/newsletter URL. Select “Import” once your archive is found. You can also upload a .csv file of your posts. If your platform isn’t listed, check if it has an RSS feed, as we support imports from platforms like Squarespace and ConvertKit through RSS.
Community
5 million paid subscriptions: Creators on Substack reached 5 million paid subscriptions!
Substack on film: We launched Substack on Film, a series of short videos that capture creators in their natural habitats—at home, in their neighborhoods, or wherever their ideas spark. Shot on 16mm film, the first film visits
writers and at Mac’s home in Oakland.Grubstack: Substack hosted a three-day live video food festival featuring chefs, writers, and creators such as
, , , and . More than 60 creators went live, hosting everything from intimate cook-alongs to knife skills workshops to deep conversations about the future of food media.
Substack Reads is now The Substack Post. The new name reflects the publication’s expanded ambition: to help you connect with and appreciate great culture in all its forms—writing, film, imagery, video, audio, and in-person experiences.
About town: Substack partnered with
to host Night of Desire at a bathhouse in New York. Listeners submerged while writers , , , , , , , and gave readings on the theme of desire. In Los Angeles, gathered , , , Coco Mocoe, , , , and others for drinks and discussion. Substack’s fashion community celebrated ’s newsletter launch: Francesca Scorsese, , Recho Omondi, , and others played Mad Libs between courses at ’s restaurant King. And in another corner of the city, partnered with Madewell to host , , , , , , and more, with dinner prepared by recipe developer and writer .
In the press: AOL and Adweek reported that
launched a Substack following his departure from CNN. In The Business of Fashion, Gen Z trend chronicler described the frenzy around exclusive sweatshirt drops. Page Six cited ’s scoop revealing that Melania Trump’s wedding dress is listed on eBay. In Mother Jones, wrote about his exit from the Washington Post. Inc. interviewed about her newsletter, and People wrote about ’s. The L.A. Times featured culinary couple Bricia Lopez and TJ Steele, who share five monthly recipes in From Oaxaca. was profiled in Vanity Fair. ’s Night of Desire was covered in Dazed by , and also in Paper, Office, Autre, and Elephant magazines, among others. New York magazine spoke with , , , and about the growing popularity and rich diversity of content available on Substack. And in Vogue, toasted its Substack debut alongside some of fashion’s most familiar faces.Congratulations to
, whose Substack has been shortlisted for the Scottish Press Awards in the Arts & Entertainment category.
Celebrating a milestone or press feature? Email milestone@substackinc.com or let us know in the comments.
I kind of wish video had its own section on Substack. I get that some Substackers enjoy the video features (and some are really good at it), but I worry that those of us who focus exclusively on the written word will get drowned out. Some of us came here to get away from video.
Exactly. In the short attention span economy, Substack reigns supreme, and also why I joined here. We can't be all things to all people, otherwise no one is happy.
100% agree.
I agree with this as someone who isn’t big on livestreams and videos on this app. I love that this is a place to escape and dive into my own articles and other peoples writings! Feels like a home just without the house 🤍
Completely agree.
I do video and I agree. Everything isn’t for everyone
Have found that the best response to my posts is a dual approach of written for some and others do not read a post and require a video or audio podcast . Depending on my mood of the moment will do both to reach the broadest audience.
As much as I lament the short attention span of many both seem to be needed,. Latest information I have is as people our attention span has dropped from 20 seconds to that of equivalent to a gold fish of about 6 seconds in recent years. Does not say much for humanity when one needs flashing lights and noise to keep many engaged.
I'll never begrudge anyone a method that works for them, so if the video features work for you, have at it. I will, however, push back on the notion that "both seem to be needed" due to shortening attention spans. In the last 10-15 years, two long-form movements emerged as a response to the micro media landscape: podcasts and newsletters. The popularity of podcasts exploded in the mid 2010s, just as micro media platforms, like Vine and Snapchat, were peaking. A few years after that, Substack launched. A cluttered, frantic landscape created demand for focused, longer-form media. I sometimes worry Substack is sacrificing its focus, and potentially its appeal, in favor of short-term gains.
right on! Adding the video feature would make it another Instagram. I remember when IG used to be photos only, but once they integrated the video feature everything turned not so attractive to me. I hope it is not the case with substack.
I wholly agree with your comments here Pablo.
100% agre
I know English is still the main language in Substack (and it probably will always be), but it would be great if you could also filter on the different leaderboards by language. This would allow people to find voices in other languages.
Love this idea!
While I appreciate the innovation, as someone who values Substack primarily for thoughtful written content, I'm concerned about feature creep. The new video and live options triggered the same visceral reaction I have when opening Instagram or TikTok; an immediate sense of overwhelm and noise rather than substance.
The platform's strength has always been in creating space for nuanced writing, curated notes, and meaningful visual accompaniments. Perhaps these multimedia features would better serve the community as opt-in extensions rather than integrated elements that risk diluting the focused, contemplative experience that attracted many of us in the first place.
Is there any chance of a memoir category or creativity please. I've always found it hard to pick a suitable category for my substack. It's weird that you have Literature and Fiction
I write memoir too. I think your suggestion is a great idea!
Absolutely yes to memoir.
I am attracted to Substack by its being focused on written pieces which are fundamentally more carefully vetted by their creators than video interactions.
Thanks for the mention, Substack!
I think the nomination of my newsletter in national press awards is proof Substack is crossing over into territory usually reserved for legacy newspaper groups.
Thanks for sharing the nomination; I’m new to Substack.
I am begging... pleading.... For you to please allow an option to disable the welcome page. I have had so many people either not know how to get past it or complain that I was asking them to subscribe before they'd even read the thing. It's a really big problem.
Also, could you please allow the option to disable the voice over function entirely. I don't want somebody else's voice reading my work. I have my own audio for that.
Show quoted text
Good to see additional subcategories but please can we have Nature. It’s been repeatedly requested by many nature writers and while it’s good to see, Wildlife is a sub-category of Nature.
And to echo an earlier comment, the new subcategories available for writers not just reading interests.
For discovery, it’s easy to get the impression that leaderboards and rising are just for those with lots of paid subscribers. For Substack to really rocket, discovery (leaderboards and rising) needs to include top and rising writers and publications irrespective of whether subs are free and paid taking into account subscriber growth and engagement—this surely drives Substack’s overall growth and monetisation more effectively over time.
Substack on 🔥 -- keep up the fantastic work, Substack Team💥⚡🙏🏻🙏🏻
This is amazing. Thank you, Substack Team! I wish there were more subcategories, but I'm sure that's already in the works. You are amazing! Keep rocking, and have a beautiful week!
Movies & TV 🥹🥹🥹 Ily Substack!!!
One suggestion: If new categories are now available on a consumer level (as an interest), we'd love to be able to select them as a proper category for our publications. Right now, "Culture" is still the only relevant category I can select for my film/tv publication. This way, new categories movies & TV can also have their own leaderboards etc.
Thanks for sharing Sophie! I'll pass this along to the product team.
Appreciate you.
lol was just coming here to say THIS EXACT THING. You're on it, Sophie!
Film minds think alike 😅
Greetings,
You must create 'Psychology' and 'Metaphysics' categories. They are essential.
Metaphysics is the overarching category for philosophy, spirituality, religion, and others.
Psychology speaks for itself.
Also, "Faith and Spirituality" are two separate categories and should not be put together, the way "Arts and Entertainment" never should have been.
Thank you for making these changes. They will improve the vibe and function here a lot.
Many of us clinicians have been literally baking for a Mental Health category. You can see that category as a reader but you can't put yourself into it through your settings as a publisher.
Please: everyone sign into YouTube and watch even a bit of Cory Booker’s speaking! Get the numbers up!!!
https://www.booker.senate.gov/live
Thank you for sharing the link!
I'm.an Android user, when is Live scheduling going to be available for this system? Thanks.
Hey where is coffee w the contrarians ? cant find it anywhere. I love listening toJen and Norm while I'm getting ready for my day in the early hours
I’m so excited about this 🥹
I would love for Substack to make a dedicated interests section for photographers. Currently, I believe that photography is grouped into arts, but this is a distinct community that is continuing to grow on this platform and deserves its own dedicated space.
Please add the ability to index the archive.
Or I mean, create categories/folders to drop posts into to organize an archive. Also, then be able to drag and drop to order posts within categories.
I require a geometric/graphical interface! This hashtag is aight for web searches but wack for this.
Thx
Sam
Great info here. I've been asking/suggesting/begging for a Love & Relationships and Dating categories. It would be super helpful for those who write in this space. IMO Culture, Heath & Wellness (which is what I'm using) is too broad. If you have any better suggestions, please let me know.
Thanks for coming to my SUB Talk.
Should there be a separate ”Substack Growth” subcategory? Some will say its Education, others Business — perhaps its a different category in its own right.
Wow. Lots of new stuff!! 😀
Good to hear about a new tool that helps you choose the title your audience is most likely to open. Where is the tool? Thank you!
Will you have a video billboard for posting April 5th rallies, protests and events? Michigan
Substack on 🔥 -- keep up the fantastic work, Substack Team please 🥺
Wow - overwhelmed with all the things you can now do. I've just hit my third anniversary on Substack and have been taking the opportunity to ask my subscribers what they want to see more of (and maybe less!) https://fionabeckett.substack.com/p/substack-3-years-on
Just love how much the community keeps growing as the platform continues improving!
I didn't know I could change settings to see what I like more often. Thank you for that. My concern is making Substack too complicated. Lots of new features means having to learn more about using this platform. Hoping Substack will keep things simple and not go down the Meta road of complication, which I happily left last year.
I love to simply browse the publications under a topic. I cannot tell at all how they are sorted in that feed, it seems so entirely random. My only frustration is clicking into publications and finding only a Coming Soon or that it has only one or two posts from 3 years ago. Is it possible to add some sort of simple notation in the listing for each pub that says something like "30 posts, latest 4/1/25"? Then at least I would know if it's worth a click or not.
Swipe to archive seems to be gone? List view for subscriptions in ox tab. Please add back! Super common UX feature on majority of apps like this.
I find your organization absolutely the worst I’ve ever encountered. Contact is great, you offer some really excellent writers and music, videos, and yet if I want to go back and find something, it’s nearly impossible. Then I encounter things I know I did not sign up for, don’t want to, can’t organize them. I do very much appreciate the fact that you have an audio transcription of all of the written material, That is much appreciated. But I do wish there was some approach or better approach to organizing Contant
Please please please could you add a spell check for text posts!
I love what you have done here to support what many of my brothers and sisters died for. Thank you for that respect. It means more than my feeble attempt with words.
How can I use music on my podcast to do a music show is that possible?
Is there a poetry category yet? Did I miss it?
On sub-categories, I am not seeing the “Manage Interests” tab mentioned in the article.
Where is it hidden?
Functionally I used every time I opened the app is now gone from the subscription tab! Please bring back swipe to archive and long press to play next…I can’t figure out how to create a listening queue at all now!
In my future I see all these new categories as already here now : )
We need a Mental Health category. Like yesterday.
I’m getting so tired of the word sub stack. Perhaps if there was some derivation of the term and it’s history, I’d be more tolerant. It just sounds like a big pile of paper and reminds me of the movie Paper Chase — that and it wasn’t a product of my brainstorm.
Vi uno solo de los videos pero no puedo aprobar las obsenidades sin propósito informativo y educativo. Seamos más racionales y estéticos que viscerales y groseros
Are you going to add a search filter for "most viewed post" and for "most subscribers from post"?
Bonjour
Video content on Substack is where anyone can get discovered right now. This is the place. Now is your time.
Awesome is a new super ideal congrstulation and Kiss for future ! 💯
Please consider allowing live feed options for those of us with very few followers. Many of us are attempting to use this format to release information in hopes for the greater good. Paid subscriptions don't matter to me and do not reflect either the value or reach of the work I would love to share. There's a subculture of indie artists and digital creators uninterested in revenue and numbers of followers, and although this app appears to be primarily for self-monetization purposes ( no judgement), we can still exist here without getting in your way. Let us create. You may be surprised by what those of us uninhibited by subscription ecosystems have to share.
Thank you
PN
I didn’t know what happened. I was in the middle of listening to an article then the app quit and wouldn’t respond. I closed it out and reopened and was lost. I finally played around to find my unread articles. At the top I found this.
It may take me a bit to learn again, but so far it’s love/hate for me with Substack. Being so active I like to just listen as I work on things.
Hi
I completely agree! As someone who isn’t really into livestreams or videos on this app, I love that it’s a space where I can immerse myself in my own writing and explore others' work. It feels like a home—just without the walls!
There is no love for us Samsung Android users. It shouldn't be announced if the feature isn't available for both. Android users would love the luxury of scheduling their lives.
I might be going mad, but I can’t see the option to choose TV and movies within the Culture category?
Is there a way to get onto a list to get invited to specific niche live events or is this just via word of mouth? I'd love to meet and get to know other fashion substackers in person.
I am only interested in HeathervRichatdson but keep getting emails from Substack and I am not getting daily letters for months — why is this another Trump censorship - if permanent I will no longer pay 5.00 monthly for no daily mail . I am not interested in on line daily letters. I like to read letter in the mornings - why such a mess every day??
Was my comment removed?
I'll say it twice...
I don't like any of this. I'm a writer and just wanted a few others like me to talk with. This forum is devolved into another nightmare landscape of self-promotion. I'm sorry, but that's how I feel.
This is excellent! Appreciate your continuous improvement on Substack features. I love it!
I don't like any of this. I'm just a writer and I was hoping to find just a few others like me, not another fucking nightmare landscape of the same thing I always encounter. Sorry, but that's the way I feel.
AMAZING UPDATES, and LOVING lives
Thanks for adding a Movies & TV category!
wow! I'm totally psyched for these new upgrades!!
i don't use iOS, so I'm really hoping it gets to androids soon!
thank you so much substack! 🫶🏼
I do love me💚✌️some Substack
This is amazing, I know we will learn from it, thanks
Video games finally!
H Aaa
I love the subcategories - but how does Substack determine what is in each subcategory as it's not possible to choose one for your Substack? I was hoping to see a Nature category, I would love to be able to find other nature writers more easily.
How do you do a paid subscription? Does it cover various members we follow. For instance if I want to follow Rosie O'Donnell and be a paid subscriber how do I do that. Right mow I'm unpaid
Everyone wants to be seen, to feel like themselves, and to be recognized. That’s why photos and videos are so deeply human—they capture who we are. I love seeing these moments because they let me connect, feel, and share in the emotions. Thank you all for that.
😄I don’t think folks are ready for me “live”, yet🤣
Thank you for this information! I noticed I was #21 in "rising in parenting" on Saturday, which got me excited, only to learn that my status dropped to #58 later that afternoon. It's kind of an emotional rollercoaster to see that stat fluctuate so quickly, especially since I didn't understand the metrics of how that number rises and falls until reading this. I do wish that metric wasn't based on paid subscriptions alone, though. So thanks for the clarification!
Good Stuff! I’m excited.
THANK YOU
“For now, the feed features short clips from video posts”
So just TikTok but for “smarter” people who prefer Substack. Lol.
I have to confess that I'm really not familiar with this site ,but I'm going to give it a shot ,on this beautiful day in Toronto Ontario, Canada, which fortunately is a long way from Donald Howard Trump, fortunately !
When will scheduling be available for Android?
for those of us that can not use a cell phone because they are electromagnetic hypersensitive or are rightly concerned about the health concerns caused by radiation and can not use devices such as cell phones that use wireless radiation is there a substack way to use a desktop app to do a live broadcast
my wish is that we pay a set amount for total access. There are so many good writers on substack and I could spend hours just reading and of course commenting.
Ok
Where is Patti Smith's Substack?!
YAY
Yep. I don´t use iPhone.
Congratulations!
I find this function ties human interaction to staring at screens while sitting on your bum. It will not involve people in personal hands on invention. It will, however, show chefs for what they create in the way of bodies as, if they personally present, you can judge by weight and tidiness. At my age, I do not want to have to invest in an expanding number of electrical gadgets that it will take a new dictionary of specific terms to navigate, and a monstrous amount of power generation to watch. Get outside before this becomes your life.
How about an "edit" function for the comments. Unless one already exists and I don't know about it.
Suggestion: would there be a way to add a "tags" section to our sites so that people could read through topics that interest them?
That's the only thing I've found was better on WordPress than Substack and it's something I'm missing a bit.
Otherwise I love it here!!
Not just publishers. We readers love to hear the updates.
Did I miss the “books” category?
With chats, many people will post the same thing because scrolling is endless. I feel like chats could be a grid of 2 or 3 columns to be able to see multiple chats at once. Also, sometimes a video will continue playing sound in the background even after being closed. Other times, they'll play and then the chat will move down and the video stops playing indefinitely
Appreciate these new features and updates. QUESTIONS: When will Android users be able to pre-schedule a Livestream video? And when will there be a MENTAL HEALTH category we clinicians can include ourselves in from our end (perhaps add this as a sub-category under Health and Wellness - our only option right now)?
Unless I'm missing it, I don't see a category that suggests "Crime" in all its splendid and distressing variations. I'm not talking "true crime," a once-hot genre that is burning itself out in commercialization. I'm talking "Real Crime." Or, if that sees out of date, like mens' adventure magazines of the 1950s, come up with a better moniker for the rapidly shifting local, national and international law-breaking and outlaw-chasing of the new Century. Global gangs, lonely-hearts stings that are called "pig butchering" in Asia, espionage that targets white-collar companies like Merck and little banks in the center of Oklahoma, South American burglary gangs that enter the target territory (the U.S. and Western Europe) on tourists visas, bringing their wi-fi security jammers and sophisticated methods, and on and on. The world has shrunk. You can't tell whether that short-con telephone call with an AI-modified voice is your grandson in trouble, a local scammer or a Yahoo Boy in Nigeria. It isn't a little subgenere. It's what's happening and there are lots of Substacks beginning to catch on. So let's build a community.
I kind of wish video had its own section on Substack. I get that some Substackers enjoy the video features (and some are really good at it), but I worry that those of us who focus exclusively on the written word will get drowned out. Some of us came here to get away from video.
Saya berharap video memiliki kategori tersendiri karna saya tidak pernah sebelum nya berpartisipasi dalam hal apapun dalam bentuk video jadi saya sedikit ragu
I hope this bloat doesn't lead to censoring. Many of us had to leave platforms with the scamdemic.
Where is the subcategory of Movies under Culture? There is no “manage interests” selection in Settings.
interesting
Android Live video scheduling please!!!!! Thanks.
Substack is awesome!
I am subscribed to Timothy Snyder. When I get his email summary it says I am subscribed. When I go to comment, it says “For subscribers only.” Can you help?
Mind frish and good looking fature
I wish there was a way to incorporate ads to have other revenue sources beyond subscriptions.
Substack on 🔥 -- keep up the fantastic work, Substack Team!
Did we actually get a film and TV category? I will have to check it out.
Thanks for the invite!
Thanks for the updates! So cool to see this platform continue to progress and evolve! 🙌🏻👌🏻
Unsubscribe
1. Who is this "Mills Baker" guy - seems cool, especially the mustache
2. Still no "Both Are True" category that just includes my newsletter, despite my repeated requests via email and lawyer - plz advise?
3. I have paid way too much money for a lawyer to email you guys - is there a way to get paid subscribers specifically to pay for my lawyer?