New tools for writers: Image and layout options, version history, more
A rundown of the latest product improvements to help Substack writers succeed.
At Substack, we’re focused on building for and with writers. In recent weeks, we’ve released some new tools and improvements to give writers even more control over what and how they publish, from new presentation options to version histories, editable comments and more. Read on for a rundown of what’s new.
Magazine layout
To give writers more ways to customize their Substacks, we’ve created a new layout option for a publication’s homepage that offers a more visual, magazine-like design.
Publications such as The Empire of the Tiny Onion, Examiner+, and The New Fatherhood are already trying out the layout (and we’re currently demoing it on our own publication, On Substack).
To preview and select the option, go to your publication dashboard and select Settings > Edit theme > Layout > Magazine.
Note that writers can pin up to four posts “above the fold.” Any un-pinned spots and the rest of the post list are filled in reverse chronological order.
Read more: How do I switch my publication's homepage to a different layout?
Full-width images
We now support the option for writers to add full-width images to their Substack posts.
To add an image that exceeds the column width, upload or drag the image into your posts, then click it and select "Toggle full width" from the formatting options in the corner of the image. Toggle again to return the image to column width.
Read more: How can I edit images on a Substack post?
Post traffic sources
To give writers more insight into where readers landing on a specific post are coming from, we’ve added a traffic sources module to writers’ publication dashboards. This module lists out the top sources of traffic for each post, aggregated by domain.
To view post traffic sources, go to your publication dashboard. On the “Posts” tab, you’ll see a list of published posts, and can view traffic sources for each by selecting the down caret (∨).
Read more about what each traffic source means: Where can I see how readers got to my Substack post?
Editable comments
Good news for hasty typers: Readers and writers can now edit comments they’ve made on posts and threads. To edit, click on the three dot menu under your comment, then select “Edit comment.”
Once you make your change, an edit status with a time stamp will appear next to your name on the comment.
Read more: Can I edit my comment on a post?
Version history
While crafting posts in the Substack editor, writers can now access past versions of their drafts.
As you write and edit your posts, the Substack post editor automatically saves your drafts. The draft history feature now shows your version history of a post and also lets you revert your draft to a previously saved version.
Click the new “Version history” button at the bottom of any Substack post draft to review or revert to past versions of that post.
Read more: How do I restore a post draft?
We hope you give these new tools a try. Feel free to leave feedback and ideas in the comments, and bring thoughts and questions about these updates to upcoming Writer Office Hours threads.
Just switched over to the magazine layout and love it! And while I was tinkering, I found how people create lists of links on their pages! I thought that was some kind of premium feature. Thanks for the update and excited to see what the team has coming next!
Wonderful news! Yes that feature is quite buried but it's great and available to everyone - https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059181172-How-do-I-add-a-recommended-link-#:~:text=The%20recommended%20links%20feature%20allows,popular%20posts%2C%20among%20other%20uses.
ZOUNDS!
And the Oscar for Best Art Direction goes to . . .
THE ENGINEERS AT SUBSTACK!
Can we get spell check too, please?
Wow I am with you !
Have you tried Grammarly? I use that now and it works great...!
I have, but the extension on Chrome is a bit lousy for my taste and if I'm pasting content from elsewhere I might as well just use Word/Google docs or Pages
Yup
Google Docs works well for my drafts. It even has a grammar check to go along with the spell-checker.
I hate GOOGLE. Seems like every time I do need to use it, they charge me a dollar. No notice, no explanation! Right now, I am pretty sick of social media anyway, lots of talking, nothing gets done. Now FB, IG, and I guess Threads, no more fact checking. Who wants that?!? Except trump.
HUH! Now look at that. Spell check is working. So, AI is reading what I write?
I have said this many times. I am looking for a time machine to take me back to 1997 when technology was helpful, not intrusive and invasive.
Oooh, the new magazine layout feels so fancy. Love it!
Trying out the magazine option on my own publication. Love how it looks on the demos.
Magazine layout AWESOME!!!!!
Love the magazine option! Thank you!!!!
All great stuff. Thanks, Substack!
Magazine layout is a very exciting idea. It gives the opportunity to showcase more of your best content and to welcome the new reader. Some express remarks: There are too many posts sizes! 5. The one that is under the biggest post in the middle could be removed. Instead of it there could the be subscribe bar. | Images to the right? Not a fan. The image used to grab your attention and then your eye glides to the title and subtitle. Now title and image are fighting for attention. But it is good to have images on mobile. | The logo isn't clickable, but I like that newsletter title is more prominent. | The mobile view is overcrowded, there are too many items on the first line.
I shared this with our product team. Thank you, Petar!
Good note re how it looks on a mobile. I read little on my phone and tend not to think about that. I love the "magazine'' look mostly because I like things on dead trees :) (Sorry trees... just love the feel of paper/mag/book in hand. And so anything that replicates that...)
This is all fantastic news! Thank you. I'm especially happy to hear about the changes with the visuals, both image width and homepage possibilities. I use images a lot (both my own artwork and otherwise), and I've been frustrated at times with some of the limitations.
Good stuff. Thank you.
I like the idea of the magazine layout!
I'm experimenting with the new magazine layout. I Like it so far, although I wouldn't mind if I could use a larger banner image at the top, instead of my publication logo. Thanks for the work you do, Substack team--it is very much appreciated! The editable comments will be a definite asset.
These are great! Kudos to Substack for listening to their writing community and continuing to iterate.
Will there ever be an option to put text NEXT to an image within a post? It's such a simple feature and, geez, it would be great to be able to do.
Wow awesome thanks 👏👏👏
I like the Magazine layout! Thank you.
Editable comments are clutch
I really like the magazine layout!
Love the new magazine layout!
Love these updates - thank you!
Very excited to try the magazine layout!
So, in messing with it for a few minutes, my feedback on the magazine theme is this: one cannot choose which posts one wants pinned in which spot. For instance, I want my "New to this newsletter? Start here" post pinned in the middle. But when I pin other posts, it shuffles the order around on the homepage. I'd like to be able to arrange these easily without having to pin and repin to get them in the spots I want (which hasn't been successful yet, though I will keep trying).
It looks like if I unpin everything, then pin again in reverse order of which I want them to appear (pin post I want to show up in bottom left, then pin post I want to show up on top left, then pin post I want to show up in the middle), that works. My point is this should be a little less time-intensive and little more intuitive. Maybe a drag-and-drop option when choosing to use the magazine layout?
Yep, that's correct (reverse order). Appreciate the feedback about making this more intuitive!
You're welcome. Thanks for listening!
More incentives to really get me started -- thank you!
Woohoo for updates - these are awesome :)
On magazine layout (note me editing my comment so it actually makes sense . .. :) ) Lo, it is done! I'll let you know if I get feedback, but I like it. :) I second the suggestion that it be easier to pick which four posts appear above the fold, plus I would like the caption to my top pinned post to appear above the fold with my image.
Hell. Yes. 🙌
Thanks for all these enhancements! 👍
I much preferred seeing the time of the last save rather than just a checkmark with Version History because I could know with absolute certainty at a glance that my changes had been saved whereas now I have no clue without clicking through to a separate page. To me, this seems like a step backwards in the UI.
My thought exactly.
sorry posting this in more than one spot but want Substack people to see this:
Something odd about Substack is every time I add a new writer to my subscription, the next thing that pops up is something about tweeting this. Why is that? It seems to go against the whole concept of Substack to me -- "subscribe to us and tell the world on the one-party fascist Twitter site."
A special note regarding Twitter: I used to be able to read a tweet thread if linked to an article but the last month or so within 20 seconds of going to that tweet thread, a pop-up blocks my view. This pop-up wants me to join or sign into Twitter to read that thread. I have no plans to join that site or to let them know who I am in my Brave VPN-cloaked world. So Substack writers who link to Twitter threads should be aware that perhaps many other Substack readers are like me and avoid these big-tech sites.
Thank you! I have not tried magazine layout, but I just used the restore post and wide image features today. Rock on. <3
Love the magazine layout! For a publication like Murray Bridge News, which publishes frequently, it's great.
These are great, I love the magazine theme and the option to pin posts. These updates continue to be useful and super intuitive. Can't wait for the comic creator tools I've heard rumors about!
This is great—thanks!
Divine intervention. Fantastic folks!
Great idea
This is great! I just changed my photos to wide and my front page to magazine and both look so cool.
I am not sure the traffic is working right for mine because the last two, for example, say 100% e-mail but my open rates are about 30% and the total is much higher for views. Could there be a lag or just not working yet?
Thanks for keeping us improving !
Hi Emily- Not discounting the possibility that the data is buggy, but I often see that a single subscriber registers in the system as viewing the email/page dozens of times, even within a minute. Might be part of the disconnect?
Yes that happens but most of my traffic is from Facebook and twitter so it wouldn’t be 100% e-mail ever.
How do I add a photo to a Substack reply?
Where is spell check?
I’m new here so maybe I have missed the boat!
But spellcheck seems like it would be amazing addition? I don’t understand notes when there is comments at the end of your publication and for the love of all things what is chat ? Other than this Substack I’m sure we will fall in love. Dear god anyone ???
ah magazine layout looks tres profesh, thank you kindly - will be putting it to use now
Do I have to have a certain number of posts to pin at the top of my magazine theme? I pinned my latest, but it's not showing up top as a banner.
Loves magazine layout. For me coming from Medium that is a major selling point. It gives a way to present a space that is for all my stuff. Love it.
My posts fall into 4 areas: fiction, travel, humor, plus the serialized novel. I am trying to figure out a way to group them, via either graphics or formatting to make it more reader friendly.
I would love to have “tabs” or headings on my home page that sort these for my readers. eg. a tab that says, “TRAVEL” so that when someone wants to read only travel articles, they could click on that and see only those. I can’t seem to find any options for that sort of formatting. Is it even possible?
Or is there a way to add icons or tags or graphics that would "flag" each category. Where can I find this information? One thing I have done is to visually set apart the serialized novel, by using the same photograph of boots for each chapter, but with different colored borders. So anyone scrolling down can easily spot the chapters. Sorry this is such a long question -but I need help. Sharron at LEAVES
Hi. Just checking. There seems to have been a change in the default promo image in the magazine layout. Seems now to just be the overall substack image, rather than the main image in a particular article or podcast. That right?
My writing is happening, but really, really, REALLY (is that enough really?) want to be able to place photos in line with the text, and not just between paragraphs. Is there a way to do this that is available but I am not seeing? ALSO--putting a couple of photos next to one another as opposed to vertically near each other? I am no technophobe, but don't always find the workarounds. ANYONE? ANYONE? Would really like to alter the appearance a bit... so it looks more journalistic as needed. Thanks for this platform! It has made this leap into a retirement based endeavor feel quite rewarding.
Is there a way to have part of a section and then a READ MORE section folks can click on? Some of my sections are long and I'd rather it be truncated. thanks
Why does the shrink photo arrows not work? I’m using an iPad. Is this the problem? Any suggestions?
Thanks a ton!!
Question on the Magazine front end...any way to have a section NOT SHOW UP in this? I'd like to have just the newsletters on the front page, but random posts I do between the monthly news letters stay in their own section.
Will you be implementing tiktok embeds anytime soon? Would appreciate it for my own newsletter :)
i love these new feature roll outs, even if the features aren't ones I will use, just so exciting to see the product being build out
Hi...first of all...thank you so so much and I can only imagine how inundated you must be with questions. I've sent a couple emails in different ways, asking for help, but haven't heard back. I'm totally new and just getting going...my biggest concern is that I'm no where near ready to launch...I'm learning and writing up all my launch copy, but the "coming soon" post is up and people are clicking and I cannot seem to make that go away. I'm not even at the stage to be announcing "coming soon." Can any one help me get that down, and show me how to stay in "edit" mode until I'm ready to fully launch? Including the coming soon page? Or can I edit that page, at least? Sorry for all the questions but needing just a tad bit of support as I figure all this out...XO XO XO J.
I have the same problem. However, I think most people have learned to ignore that first auto default post, so I wouldn’t be too concerned about it.
Just dropped my first (intro) podcast episode. Wondering: is there a way to embed the audio player in the middle or at the end of the text? This would serve my purposes better than always having the player at the top.
Traffic Sources are really appreciated and let's give that magazine layout a shot!
I am still hoping for the ability to tag articles. Tagging will make categorizing articles or series much easier. Some extent to localize the frond-end interface will be much appreciated as well.
Love these new developments. Will be switching to the magazine layout for my homepage asap.
I like it thanx.
In a world based on deception lies and greed it is refreshing that places like substack do exist for if we do not have a difference of and on opinion we have no opinion at all.
Why does that damn black box keep popping up and getting in the way of what' I'm writing? "Your changes are synced..." MAKE IT GO AWAY.
just LOVE the magazine layout!
Adding to my comment below.
I uploaded the mp3 files to my website and pasted the URL into my substack post in hopes it would recognize them by file type and auto-embed a player. Not the case.
Making it a podcast is not desirable and doesn't work for the reasons in my prior post. I want to separate each iteration of the song with its own player.
I see that I can embed soundcloud links. But these are partial or rough song fragments. I'd prefer to not have to upload the files to soundclould. I suppose I could have an unlisted playlist on YouTube or a separate channel just for these demos. Again, not desirable.
Are there any future plans to host or allow for mp3 file embeds directly?
I want to start a series of posts where I show songs from their inception to a more produced work. This requires that I include multiple mp3 files in my post. It isn't really a podcast episode as much as 2 to ??? distinct mp3 files with written commentary between them. I do not want to bring them together as a single file.
For instance:
File 1: A phone demo of a chord progression - may be a verse.
File 2: Another phone demo - full lyrics or some lyrics
File 3: A more fully produced demo.
Is this possible? Do I need to upload the files elsewhere? I'd prefer not.
Any guidance is appreciated.
Love it. Thank you! I recently discovered the Edit Version addition. Very helpful.
I feel like the magazine layout is still in need of improvements. There are too many empty spaces, which are traditionally filled by advertising. I think the advantage of dropping the ad model is exactly to adopt and create layouts that couldn't be made under that model, and through that thinking to either make the ad model's layouts better because ads and their reserved spots are out of the equation, or create something entirely new that couldn't be thought of when ads where mandatory.
Hi guys! I am experiencing regular glitches with the version history tool. Very often the draft that loads is not the most recent one, so I make my round of edits and then realise that I've been working on an outdated version. Then I load version history and trawl back to find the previous edits and in order to copy and paste the changes in to my current draft, I have to restore the draft and do it all manually. Personally I have found that this tool is more time-consuming and laborious to make edits on than the previous version because of this glitch. Is anybody else finding this?
Hi there - really liking the magazine layout, but I'm curious why you only allow 3 sections to be displayed on desktop and then add others under "More?" it seems that the topnav should have more than enough space to display (for the record I've only got 4 sections, i just want *one* more haha)
I love the magazine style, but I'm sticking to the default because I feel that the title is way to big and bold. If we had a chance to switch the publication font beside the publication image, I may switch.
Great!
Awesome features, eager to try out
Thanks so much! These are great -- the update I like the most is getting info on the links/referrals.
Sounds like some great options although not sure which I would check it out.
I like the magazine layout, tried it on my publication and it looks amazing. I also enjoy the view source which is essential. Great work guys. I appreciate your hard work. There are two suggestion which I hope Substack could consider, 1) Allow Bylines to see the stats of their contributed story, 2)My publication hosts different sections, allow each section to have their own subscribe/unsubscribe button, currently subscribers has to go to settings and go through a complicated process to subscribe to their preferred section. Thank you guys.
These seem like good updates, I'll try them soon, thank you!
Sounds good, thanks! One thing I would love to be able to do with my food images is position two or even four in the space, to show the drama of a before and after, or a step-by-step recipe. No rush, when you’re ready.
How do I delete a draft?
Not too crazy about the magazine look but love the other improvements! Thank you for always thinking of ways to make things better!
These are some nice features added. I like the magazine layout and might try it. I’d love to see maybe one or two more options. Substacks can start looking very unique and professional.
The traffic stats and version history are also great additions to our toolboxes. Can’t wait to see what else will be improved upon this year.
I love these changes, but having a lot of pinned posts on the desktop version feels a bit damaging to the mobile experience. Scrolling back through four posts to find the newest one is a bit of a chore
Readers are telling me they are having trouble commenting. Can someone guide me to how I can make it easier to post comments?
Oh this is great. Now I just need to properly learn how to embed a single Bandcamp song lmao.
Am I able to add pages in addition to "Community" and "About"?
You can add "sections" which are up top - https://on.substack.com/p/a-guide-to-publication-sections - but no, you can't adjust "community" and "about" and "top"
Can I change the categories on the magazine option? I'd like the posts in an order other than "most popular."
Yes you can! Writers can pin up to four posts “above the fold.” Just click the "..." on any post you'd like to be in a prime position. Any un-pinned spots and the rest of the post list are filled in reverse chronological order.
How can I resize images to make them less than a column width and have text wrap around them? I've read the linked article as well and I feel as though I'm missing something obvious. I'd like to be able to have text flow beside a vertical image (like a chart, for example) instead of making the image very large.
Hi there! That's correct - we don't have text wrapping as of now.
I don't think that is possible.
Yay! I especially like the ability to see how people got to specific posts. I have been wondering- when it says someone got there from "substack.com", what does that mean? Is that typically from my newsletter's landing page, or something else?
I have been scanning the Stats tab of the dashboard to try to get a feel for where my subscribers are coming from. I can see there's a column for signup counts--awesome--but I dont understand the difference between these sources:
- substack.com (substack_profile)
- substack.com
- direct (substack_profile)
- direct (substack)
- substack.com (discover search)
- google.com (substack)
- direct (account-card)
(Not all of these resulted in signups but the differences between them still confuse me!)
Hell